


Missing Shark 01

by everowlskies



Category: Free!, Free! Iwatobi Swim Club - Fandom, harurin - Fandom, rinharu - Fandom, sharkbait (free!)
Genre: M/M, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-07
Updated: 2014-03-07
Packaged: 2018-01-14 21:22:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 27
Words: 39,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1279324
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/everowlskies/pseuds/everowlskies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It was another one of those boring mornings of course. The ones where your phone rang at two am with some exciting news about whatever job you had just been called in for. It wasn't all to exciting to Haruka though, who felt he needed a break from the nonstop, extremely stressful, exhausting, over-the-top world that went at a mile a minute. At that ungodly hour in the morning he wasn't quite sure how to make out the thrilled context in which deemed to be more vague (and irritating) than ever. It seemed they had dragged something in from a local round-the-clock fishery. </p><p>But he was a scientist after all, and it's not like the thing was an alien of the deep, right?</p><p>Was he wrong.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue: The Announcement

**Author's Note:**

> Not gonna make this too long, but this was my first full length rin/haru fic. It's a bit eccentric, but everybody likes a little spice in their life right? 
> 
> Plus i'm sorry if there's some errors tell me and i'll fix them!

It was raining pretty hard. Water droplets pelted everything below their heavenly touch, and the world was flooded under dark grey skies. Dr. Haruka Nanase, a graduate of one of the finest marine biology labs in the Kanto region, headed out into his driveway, umbrella braced over his head against the rain. He hissed irately as he slid into the driver’s seat of his car, wishing nothing more than to be sleeping in his bed still, considering it was three o’clock in the morning. The call came only an hour earlier, from one of his friends and fellow alumni Makoto Tachibana. He was ecstatic about something, saying that Prof. Rei Ryugazaki and he had been assigned to a top secret case called the ‘Missing Shark’. Haruka, being the dreadfully unenthusiastic graduate he was, only sighed and said he’d be at the lab on the outer skirts of Tokyo in an hour or so. Makoto just laughed and hung up.

Now Haruka was speeding down the hopefully empty roads of the outer districts, ignoring lights and beating trains as he usually did. The roads were empty, the most being frequented in the main centers of the city. A hot thermos of coffee bounced around in its compartment, threatening to spill over since, Haruka in a rush to get out of the house, had forgotten the lid. Rain splattered against the windshield so strongly that even the fastest of setting on the wipers couldn’t stop his vision from being blurred. It’s a bit hellish out tonight. Haruka thought to himself a bit apprehensively, and then wondered at the feeling sinking in his gut. It was dread, he finally concluded, but why? He stopped the car abruptly, missing his chance to pass over the train tracks.

The train barreled past him with a magnificent speed, and threw puddles of water high into the blackened air of the night. Purring as it idled, Haruka’s car sat still in the night; a perfect contrast to the steely beast in front of it. The doctor pondered the feeling; the uneasiness of such an early call sure had him on edge. He shook his head and placed his hands on the wheel. It was nothing, he was sure of it.

The train past with a loud shout into the night, three long blares, and then it was gone without another word. Amber and crimson lights died out and Haruka was off again, speeding out into the cold storm ahead.

***

“Haruka Nanase, this is Professor Rei Ryugazaki, he graduated a couple years before you bust rest assured you’re still his senior.” The man in the crisp white lab coat introduced the raven-haired doctor to his new lab partner. Haruka bowed and then shook his hand, feeling the warm gesture would make him look less threatening as Makoto always called him.

The man, almost a head taller than him, shook his hand with much vigor, smiling. “It’s so great to finally meet you, Dr. Nanase, I heard you had the highest GPA in all graduation history! You must bring a great honor to your friends and family, It’ll also be a great honor to me to be working with such an intelligent man!”

Haruka was dumbfounded by the droning of words the other spat out in front of him, shaking his hand longer than necessary. This was the guy he was going to be working with? He was tall and lanky, most likely from running track in his high school years, and sported hair that could pass as some sort of blue, or purple, he couldn’t tell. Contrasting scarlet glasses rested on his nost and the young smile he gave surely meant that he was more than a year his junior. Haruka nodded bluntly.

“Professor Ryugazaki graduated two years before you, being one of the youngest to ever graduate from the school.” The man informed him, noticing the unease in Haruka’s stature. “He’s almost as brilliant as you, and younger as well, I’m sure you’ll get along.”

“Now, to get down to business, I’m sure you’re wondering why you two were chosen for this case.” The man continued, rubbing his hands nervously as if it was an old habit. “Both of you are exceedingly brilliant, but there are other attributes as well…”

“Excuse me sir,” Ryugazaki piped up, interrupting his slow introduction. “But are we going to be working with real sharks?”

“Ah, well, yes I’m getting to that.” The man swallowed, his eyes skirting from Haruka’s to Rei’s in an instant then back again. Haruka’s own eyes narrowed, something was off about the man in front of them. He looked like he was hiding something that could get him arrested, or worse.

“You two were specifically picked for this case out of thousands of graduated because of your personalities.” He said dryly. “Haruka was picked for his cold demeanor; in all his cases at the school not once did he show any seeming attachment to the animals or fish he was working on or with. And Rei, you were the leader of almost all the aquatic insect experiments and cases, and you show great skills in that area. I’m sure you both will do excellent—”

“Get to the point.” Haruka hissed at him, slipping his hands into the pockets of his gray Dolphin Rehabilitation Center sweatshirt. “I’m not here for formalities; I’m here to aid a case called ‘Missing Shark’.”

The man swallowed again and nodded. “Follow me.”

***

The lab was dark, and they were both given a white coat to wear. Rei made sure that his coat was crisp and clean, giving him a more professional look as they entered the room. Haruka could care less, slipping the hood over the back so it wouldn’t pull against his neck. They were both given the passcode to the room, a lab where a gigantic round tank was primarily all of it. Haruka wondered if they were keeping sharks in there, but the tank was black and unable to see into. Tables lined the walls with weird clasps and chains, possibly to keep sharks down while they experimented. A smirk played at the doctor’s lips, this place looked something out of a horror movie.

Jars and beakers and test tubes lined the walls, and a small tropical fish tank rested on a shelf by the door. The room was so crammed with tables and cabinets and desks that it was almost impossible to function properly. They slipped around a couple things in the dark before the man reached the lights and flicked them on.

Everything looked shiny and new in the light, and Haruka could now see books of all sorts stacked freshly in every bookshelf along the ring of the room. The large tank, more than fifty feet in circumference, rose to the ceiling at about twenty five feet. The room was massive. It was still impossible to see into the tanks, the lights reflecting off the water in a way that it looked as gray as night on the inside. Haruka stepped up to the cement railing along the edge of the tank and set his hands on it. Peering into the tank, he almost couldn’t make out anything in it. But something moving closer caught his eye. For a second he wasn’t sure if it was real or not, and there was a startled sound from the man behind him giving Rei the tour of the room.

“Dr. Nanase stay away from there!” He cried as Haruka slid up on his heels, bringing his face closer to the tank. The water shifted quickly in front of him. Then stopped.

What seemed to be like a human hand crashed into the wall of the tank, causing the whole thing to tremble with vibrations. Haruka fell back in an instant, stunned as he watched five massive claws tear massive lines down the glass walls of the tank. The hand went about a foot then stopped and disappeared into the black.

Heart shooting out of his chest, Haruka turned around to see Rei leaning against a railing to a lower level of the room, breathing heavily in shock. They both threw their eyes in the direction of the director, unable to say a word as the man grimly stared back.

“Boys, welcome to the case of Missing Shark.”


	2. Day 1: The Animal

“What the hell is that?” Ryugazaki’s voice was the first to forge through the silence. Haruka stood shakily only to notice his hands were trembling far more than he originally thought. Azure eyes wide with astonishment, he stepped back from the tank. The whole room seemed bigger and darker now despite the flood of light emitting from the ceiling. The tank rested idly in the center, and now Haruka could clearly see the black figures edging closer to the glass. Serpentine movements in the water unsettled it and an eerie echo of a growl rocked waves up at the top near the ceiling.

The man behind him was silent, his breaths coming out shallow and uneven as he watched the creatures swim swiftly through the water. He walked over to a table and unlatched his briefcase, pulling out a couple folders and a tablet. Haruka would have completely ignored him if it wasn’t for the ex-overexcited professor who came over and tapped his shoulder, signaling for them to go over to him. With an essence of reluctance, they paced over to the man who was busily filing genres of information into neat piles. His face was pale, and his breaths came out shallow with fear. He worked as quickly as possible, the unnatural unknown taking its toll on the human heart beating frantically within his chest.

Haruka leaned in to take a peek at the files and picked up a photo taken at a nearby dock. It was blurry, but he could tell which pier it was instantly. A commercial fishery known for their night hunts had dragged in a net onto the slick docks, and Haruka strained his eyes to see what was in their not-so-usual load. A couple men in the picture looked terrified, and one seemed to be bleeding all down his arm. He was being dragged away from the net, and through the rain and the apparent haze of the lens in which the picture was taken, the doctor could see a couple massive shark-like tails tangled within the webbings.

The man looked over to what the other was staring at, and smiled weakly. “That was taken at 0:12. The crew had to return early after all their nets got mysteriously torn up. It’s a phenomenon that’s been happening with all sorts of fisheries in the Kanto area and some even ranging up the east coast of Japan. People with set their nets and around sunset they’ll return to find them destroyed. There was only one net in which survived during this expedition, and that one held questions nobody can answer.”

Haruka nodded at the new information, slowly compiling new data to the case in which they were investigating. He was at a loss for words, just as professor glasses behind him. They both stared blankly at the hazy picture in the raven-haired male’s hand. Something didn’t feel right about it. It was almost surreal, hell it was surreal. Everybody in the room seemed to wait for the storm of silence to end, and none of them wanted to be the one to end it. In the mute air a thrashing noise rose up from the tank.

“Well,” the director cleared his throat, nervously snapping the two out of their daze. “I’m trying to stay professional but really and truly I don’t think I can.”

Prof. Ryugazaki let out a breathy chuckle then let his eyes catch the man’s hands, which were sliding over his tablet with stunning speed and precision. He seemed to be unlocking something important and before they knew it he was at a mainframe of the building. Running his free hand through his thinning hair, he turned to look at the shadowy tank with wary eyes.

“I’ll be turning the lights on in the tank now so you can get a look at what you’re going to be working with.” He told them in a grave voice, a sense of trepidation swirling around him. “You might as well go up to the tank, but not too close. They’re known to attack people by what’s been noted this far.”

Haruka quickly nodded, his feet carrying him closer to the thing his heart was beating so quickly for. All was quiet as the man began the processes to turn the tank’s inner illuminations on. The water was so still that even Haruka would’ve believed that it was empty. Heart pounding in apprehension, he rested his fingers hesitantly on the edge of the cement barrier. And suddenly, one by one, the lights flickered to life. It was slow, too slow, and Haruka now felt his heart leaping angrily out of his chest. He didn’t even know he was holding his breath until the final light flickered on in the center, revealing the beasts in the water.

He didn’t even have a chance to catch that breath. A heavy body slammed into the side of the glass as soon as the lights revealed both species to the other. The enclosure trembled, and the raven-haired male was forced to take a couple steps back. Growling reverberated around the room with an amazing magnitude as the humans watched the animalistic creatures surge around the tank at an astounding speed. Heavy claws raked at the thick walls, drawing long gashes down the glass as easy as pencil on paper. Charcoal tails whipped around and flashes of orange, red, and silver hair rushed past them. Haruka’s eyes flickered in all directions, not sure which body to follow or which claws to be wary of.

Suddenly, as he watched a small one dart past, a heavy shoulder bashed into the wall straight in front of his head. Whipping his eyes to the brute before him he stopped and planted his feet. Although his posture was cool and unforgiving the voice inside of him wailed to take a step back and away from the creature so full of malice and bloodlust. He stared at it with a sense of authority, and only when he looked into its eyes he understood the true sense of which one was dominant in this situation.

The beast towered over him, claws burrowed into the glass, and long sleek tail thrashing about behind him. His hair was as crimson as a man’s blood and eyes more so. The beast’s skin was littered with scars, each one red as looking as fresh as the day he received them. He bared his dagger-like teeth, each one sharpened to a deadly point, and roared from behind the glass. Haruka could feel it through the glass. He rested a hand on the wall separating the two and allowed himself a small smile.

“What’s this one called?” He asked the shuddering man behind him.

“Missing Shark 01.”


	3. Day 2: The Rivals

Haruka leaned against the tank, sighing mundanely to himself as a piercing slash echoed on the glass behind him. He had grown used to the futile attempts to escape, and to be honest the game was growing old. Cerulean eyes drooping from lack of sleep, he almost considered just lying on the floor in the corner of the room under a blanket to get some decent shuteye. The beasts weren’t cooperating, but why would they? Every time Professor Ryugazaki stood baffled at their refusal to work with him Haruka would snort and give him an exhausted—and slightly disappointed—frown. The man knew nothing about real animals, and of course water bugs would be different. They were smaller than pennies and had little to no brains under their brittle exoskeletons.

So they sat in silence, taking notes on behavior since there was no way the newly captured animals would ever stop resisting—that morning that was. Someday they’d find a way to calm them down enough to do some real experiments. When that day came Haruka knew he’d be able to get something out of them, something worthwhile.

It also seemed with one prevailing stare he had made mortal enemies with 01. The beast took every shot at him as possible, relentlessly sawing at the thick glass to get to his neck. Haruka found it amusing, and often turned to stare back at the creature in a certain twisted enjoyment. Whenever their eyes met a spark would ignite between them and the oddest expressions would run over the shark’s face. He would frown firstly then it would deepen into a scowl. Sometimes 01 would hiss at him, and other times he’d attack the very glass over his head. Every time Rei would be behind him, writing down everything that he witnessed.

Once Haruka looked over his shoulder to see what he was writing, it went a little like: Day 2, 7:00 AM, Missing Sharks 02 and 03 reluctant to move, both staying close together, Missing Shark 04 staying a close distance to 01; 01 hovering closely to Doctor Haruka Nanase. He is scowling, and roaring, trying to get at the Doctor’s head. Seems to be incontrollable, already forming a close rivalry with my colleague.

A rivalry, Haruka had mused; it seemed to be something out of a story: the mad scientist becoming enemies with the thing he strived to understand. There was a silence behind him and he picked it up, slowly turning behind him to see the little silver-haired one, 04, having some sort of unspoken communication with the untamable beast. He opened his mouth in protest, aqua eyes full of dismay. The redheaded nuisance yanked his arm away, drawing blood as 04’s claws sliced along his skin. The shark growled at the inferior then darted away, angrily circling the tank.

“It doesn’t seem he understands he’s bleeding.” Rei’s upset tone rose up from behind him. Haruka turned to see him idly taking notes, pen resting against his lips. “I was hopeful they were vastly more intelligent than that.”

Haruka didn’t even think before he replied. “They are smarter than that.” He turned and pointed to the auburn-haired male. “Watch.”

After his miniature rampage, 01 stopped and stared at the gashes on his forearm. There was a heavy silence from the professor as they eyed the scientific miracle in front of them. As he sunk to the bottom of the tank, he wrapped his tail neatly under him, sitting as if a human would. Rei inhaled sharply as 02 swam over quickly, her long identical hair flowing out behind her. She stopped just before the other, and rested gently beside him, her eyes scanning over the wound then around the tank.

“Do you see that?” Haruka noted, pointing to her. “She’s looking for something to wrap the wounds in.”

Rei was quick to jump to invaluable conclusions. “Then let’s throw some cloth in there!”

“No.” The raven-haired doctor deadpanned, eyes growing dark and hard. “They won’t accept it.”

“Why not?” The professor asked, an air of arrogance about him. He seemed awfully unaware for somebody to graduate the institutes younger than Haruka had.

“He won’t accept it.” His senior replied, gazing at the creatures idling at the farthest end of the tank from them. 01 stared blankly at the wounds, as if they weren’t even real. His usually livid eyes were dull, void of anything and everything Haruka had been witnessing previously. His biological sister, as had been determined via educated guess earlier, just sat and held his arm, her eyes as his. None of them spoke, but they all had been communicating in a way only families who had been together for ages could ever understand. They all sat in a circle, their beaten and scarred backs to the humans outside their closed-in world.


	4. Day 3: The Understanding

The lab was quiet to a degree of nothing; the scratching of Rei’s pen was the only thing echoing off the hollowed walls of Haruka’s mind. They had been working for two days straight on the case, the nutty professor chastising him whenever he asked for a break. Something was wrong about the man he called his coworker, and it wasn’t just the fact that he never slept. Prof. Ryugazaki was obsessed with the creatures he so aptly named Homo Selachimorpha, the Latin name for man-shark. He always droned on about the discovery that humans weren’t the only remaining part of their genus. He would go on about it, and Haruka had never known himself to grow so tired of a person over time. As soon as the clock struck midnight he stood silently from his desk, eyelids drooping halfway down.

He passed Rei silently, no words entering his mouth. The doctor had much to say on the professor, but none of those words needed to be said in the first two days of knowing him. Yawning quite loudly, Haruka caught his attention.

“Oh, Dr. Nanase, are you going to get more coffee?” He asked, smiling warily under his glasses.

“No.” Haruka deadpanned, staring blankly into his eyes with as much passive aggression he could. Hoping he’d get his point across was one thing, but realizing he wouldn’t was another.

“Then what are you—” he cut off as Haruka dragged a thick grey blanket out from an unpacked box in the corner of the room. “You’re planning to sleep?”

Haruka’s tired face drew into a scowl. “Yes.” He didn’t need to answer to the professor; he had been working for two days straight. He would get some sleep even if it killed his coworker, hoping that the man stayed outside the shark tank for the time being that was.

Rei stood in silence, accepting that the other would require at least a bit of sleep before resuming work again. They were only two people, and surely the government enforced that so that there would be less people to know of the strange creatures. Of course the men who had originally captured them would be forced into silence, or told what they had witnessed was only a shark with netting caught on it. Nobody would ever know about the strange beasts they were dealing with.

“By the way,” Prof. Ryugazaki caught his silence. “My lab-partner is going to be joining us on the experiments; he just got passed to join this morning. I’m sure you’ll like him, he’s a little extroverted though.”

Haruka nodded a dead nod, wanting only to pass out on the floor in front of him. It looked so inviting. Taking the blanket out from under his arm, he tossed it on the ground before the edge of the tank. If possible, he’d want to be closest to the tank if something happened. He didn’t understand that feeling, nor the dread still rooted in his stomach, and frankly he didn’t want to. The feeling was something that sat like a stone in him. It didn’t boil nor bounce around, but sat silently waiting to consume him. It was the feeling that something wasn’t right, that something was going to happen. Anxiety trembled inside him like an ocean, and that was the worst feeling.

Resting his head on a pillow he made from wadding up his irksome lab coat, he dragged the blanket over him. As soon as his eyes shut he was welcomed with the blue light of the tank reflecting on his eyelids. It was almost too soothing to be true.

“You might want to go get some sleep too, Rei.” He mumbled as he turned over, head facing the two-foot tall cement barrier separating him from the tank.

“Yes Haruka.” He heard an exasperated sigh, then the sound of the sliding door opening, shutting, then locking. A small smile wrapped itself in the plaster mold of Haruka’s stoic face. He felt he had finally won, and hopefully Rei wouldn’t be as trying after a good night’s sleep.

Slowly, Haruka drifted away.

***

A figure floated over the body of the slumbering male, so easily persuaded by the dark, cold doors of sleep. He scowled so hard that he could feel the old battle scars on his chin stretch and whine. Cold water rushed around him, and it made his spine tingle with anger. He stayed there, dark crimson eyes locked on the unsuspecting predator. It would be so easy to kill him then and there without a second thought. Resting a tired, torn hand on the glass wall separating the two, the creature started to sink down to the bottom. Exhaustion swept over him in waves, but he couldn’t sleep, he wouldn’t. The others wouldn’t be safe if he wasn’t there to protect them.

So he stayed, floating over the body with a sense of apprehension. The anger wasn’t even alive anymore, drained out from his being after every wasted attempt to free his family. He let out a deep breath, feeling the oxygen surge through his veins and out the slits on his neck, releasing thousands of pinpoint bubbles into the water. It was almost interesting, watching the two predators argue and bicker among each other, as different in personality as his kind was. The one with the sea-glass eyes was more than infuriating, the way he spoke so to the point and wrong. He came up with these crazy notions that made the crimson-haired shark snicker with amusement.

The other one though, stood a fair amount of ground against him. He was stoic and assertive, glaring back whenever he made an attempt to get at him. If he was back home, the shark wouldn’t have used such vulgar acts of dishonor and violence. Something about the midnight-haired human got on his nerves, and struck all the wrong cords that made him as vehement as conceivable. It was sickening, but he would survive. The others just watched and followed, as subordinates would. He was going mad.

But there was nothing he could do. He wouldn’t dare talk to them, or cooperate, or even accept their food. He had turned down two meals already, and they looked more appetizing than anything else. He wasn’t stupid; he could speak their language just as well as them. When he heard glasses say ‘tranquilizers in the fish’ he forced back the urge to eat the bloody banquet. He couldn’t trust anything.

As he drifted down to take a peek at the sleeping male, he noticed a distraught look on his face. Confused and conflicted, the shark took his hand off the glass and stared back with all the disgust in the world.

The human opened its eyes slowly, facing him with a hazy sleep-ridden gaze. Eyes as clear as the water’s-edge in the morning light, he blinked slowly, understandingly.

So you’re Haruka.


	5. Day 4: The Stare

It was a loud crash that woke him up. Amidst his dreaming of solitude and silence, he heard some sort of high pitched squeal. Still groggy from sleep, he stood on the doors between sweet lies and painful realities, not wanting to enter back into either of them. It was the loud scream then shout that shoved him out into the world. Eyes peeling open with shock, he felt the tears of a deep sleep stick to his eyelashes. Rolling around in the warm nest he had created, he realized that there were more blankets over him. Cerulean eyes focusing on a little blond bob weaving throughout the room, he sighed and sat up. His muscles strained painfully, but it felt so good he could hardly keep from stretching. Every piece of his body was aching from the deep sleep and the floor he called his bed, and he could still feel the tense feeling in his shoulders from the day earlier.

As soon as he sat, he saw a flicker of movement in the tank behind him, but when he turned there was nobody there to greet him to the new morning. The sharks were all at the other end, huddled in a mass of bodies, sleeping soundly. Haruka smirked; he knew one of them must have been awake and keeping watch on him. Yawning silently, his gaze flickered towards the analog clock. It was eight in the morning and he felt he had slept through more than a day and a half.

Suddenly a male rushed past him, dropping scrolls and files out from the bundle in his arms. The blond boy turned a corner, calling Rei’s name. A blueprint rolled out onto the floor in front of Haruka, unraveling slowly as it revealed his work from before he had passed out. It was a drawing of each of the sharks, 01 – 04, and data he had received on the uses of each part of their body. Smaller pictures, like their fin-like ears, drifted out of it and all over the place, but what really caught his attention was the picture taken the night they were captured.

Gathering up the documents and rolling them back together, he stuffed it under his arm and stood up. The lights seemed to be dimmed, and Haruka noticed that his little area was the darkest corner of the room. Cerulean eyes drifting to the two figures at the end of the gloomy room, he made his trek over.

“… Where’s the one I asked for Nagisa?” Rei’s irate tone was the first thing he heard.

“Eh? Don’t worry I’m sure it’s around here somewhere!” The blonde, presumably Nagisa, looked around wildly.

“Is this it?” Haruka asked dully, handing the scroll over to Rei, who accepted it with a reassured smile, then a frown to the helper-boy.

“Yes, thank you Dr. Nanase.”

The boy turned and looked at him with a wide smile, amber eyes bright with euphoria. “So you’re Haru? The doctor assigned to work with Rei? I’ve heard so much of you I’m Nagisa Hazuki and I’ve been assigned to help you and Rei out with the case!” He shook Haruka’s hand more violently then when Ryugazaki did the first day they met. The raven-haired marine biologist sighed; it would be a long case.

With a nod, Haruka turned to look at the tank another time. The water was still and so were the beasts, it was the most tranquil display he’d ever seen them exhibit during their stay in captivity. Rei caught his gaze and smile, holding up some files to show him some new data.

“I’ve discovered something in the way they sleep, they never face upside down. Now I know that when you flip a shark upside down it becomes frozen, but when I watched them sitting against the edge of the tank they were leaned back in the same way that would leave a regular shark paralyzed. It’s quite interesting, maybe an instinctual habit that’s irrelevant to their species in modern days? I’m not sure if they’re actually descended from sharks or humans but right now they’re more on the animalistic side

“They have a way to communicate, and I’m sure they can talk. I’ve watched them when they thought I wasn’t looking. It’s quite funny, they have the same facial expressions as we humans do, and it’s easy to understand what they’re feeling. Also 01 seems to be the alpha of the group, giving out orders and the others oblige without protest. The only one that seemed against what he was doing was the female, and I assume that’s because of family status.

“The female also seems to be in some sort of relationship with 02 though, as shown by the pictures I took of them sleeping near each other. 04 sleeps closer to the alpha, and is more obedient to him. 02, the female’s supposed mate appears to be the alpha’s adviser, dragging him away from his rages and such. They’re getting less frequent though, it seems they’re giving up… And amongst all that they still won’t eat what they’re given.” He ended his explanation with a tired sigh.

“Maybe that’s because you always are going on about poisoning their food with sedative drugs.” Haruka deadpanned, facing the tank to see the creatures start to rise out of their slumbers. They shifted and stirred, tails twitching and arms stretching. They looked perfectly human in every way.

“Oh you forgot to tell Dr. Haru about 01!” The blonde chimed in, ignoring the apprehensive shock written all over Ryugazaki’s face.

Haruka turned, eyebrows rising out of pure curiosity. “What about him?”

“He watched you all night,” Nagisa giggled with a mischievous smile on his face. “He only left when you woke up and scared him off. He looked so curious, it was kinda cute.”

The raven-haired male’s heart sped up a notch in his chest. The dread was back, but it was being suppressed by the sound of his heartbeat. He stared at Hazuki in shock, clearly unaware of the regard they had exchanged the night he fell asleep. Mildly confused, he turned his stoic face back to the glass-encased habitat.

“Why?”


	6. Day 5: The Panic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw drowning

The room was dark and quiet, too quiet for Haruka. Everything was mute, except for the low droning of electrical appliances and computers. The tank was motionless with the unconscious bodies of four perplexing beasts lying still at the bottom. They had decided to start with the experiments on these creatures. Heavy sedatives were released into the churning water earlier and despite the power it took more than ten minutes to get the powerhouses to calm down. First, the smallest one fell, grabbing at the crimson-haired alpha as he quickly blacked out. Then fell the female, quickly receding down to the bottom of the tank with lighting speed as her eyes slipped shut. Her mate went after her in shock, orange eyes as bright as the sun wide with horror. He turned and watched their leader slowly give up the struggle as well. Haruka would have said it was hard to watch, witnessing the scarlet brute slipping from his hold on the glass and drift to the reinforced floor below. Neither springing back nor protesting, they dropped like flies, and that’s what had him hoping they could just be done already.

They loaded the first one onto a table, strapping down his arms and tail just in case he woke from his slumber. Haruka watched with the precision of a hawk, cerulean eyes scanning over the body of the first test subject. It was his turn to do something helpful, and considering he was a doctor, Ryugazaki said he should take over the experiment.

Swallowing silently, Haruka picked up a pair of tweezers from the tray and leaned over the subject. He was big, bigger than the alpha, and he watched as Rei took his measurements, mumbling to himself and writing it all down. Taking the shiny silver tweezers in his gloved hand, Haruka leaned in and plucked a couple loose scales from the brute’s tail. He went on taking a few samples of his sunset hair, clipped a piece off his dagger-like claws, and measured the length of his pointed teeth. It was a usual preliminary experiment, and they didn’t need to do anything too extreme. There would come a day where they would have to test muscle composition and take x-rays, but today was not that day. 

Haruka stared at the gills on the side of his throat. Five straight lines rested at the base of his neck where the shoulder met, and to his surprise, they were plastered down and useless. Prodding them open with a small silver pick, he noticed they wouldn’t open. Turning to look at the shark’s face, he realized his breath was coming out his nose easily and smooth.

“They can breathe without water.” Haruka mumbled, taking out a pad from his pocket, a very Rei-like thing to do. Scribbling down a couple rough sketches of the gills then writing the phenomenon down, he awed at the discovery. The sharks didn’t only breathe underwater, but on land too.

They finished with 02, then 04, then the female. Each sample was taken carefully and filed into individual baggies and placed in a sterilized freezer on the basement floor of the laboratory. After each inspection a special tag was clipped onto their left ear and a tracking microchip pinned through the tip of their tail. Haruka stared blankly at the locator, its metallic surface like a miniscule ring. He didn’t know what to think of the process, so he kept his mind empty. He took samples of 01, then tagged him, wincing only slightly when the pin shot through his ear. 

01’s face was calm as a sleeping child’s, under-eyes dark with many sleepless nights. He looked so peaceful, mouth straight and lips slightly blue from the chill of the open air. Haruka watched his chest rise and fall slowly to the drug-decelerated beat of his heart. It was cruel what they were doing, and he knew it, and yet he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the beast in front of him. He didn’t know why it was, but whenever he got closer to the tan he encountered a stronger sense of dread. His heart simply told him he should not being doing this. How did he get into this mess, he’d never truly understand. His azure gaze drifted back to the shark, and for a moment it traced the patterns and lines of scars on 01’s face. He was done for now, but the closer he got to this beast the further he felt from finding sanctity.

Letting out a sigh, he calmly raised his arms to unclasp the bindings on his arm when there was a loud shout from above and a chilling splash. Whipping his head around he dropped everything he was doing and dashed towards the glass wall watching in horror as waves rocked the surface. The silver-haired shark and the female were resting on the floor, but the larger male sunk slowly, eyes opening slowly. He looked around hazily during his descent, then up to the top where a chaotic, flailing silhouette of a man was treading for his life. Heart punching its way through his ribcage, Haruka froze in place, watching Rei drift further away from the surface.

He can’t swim. His mind screamed at him with full ferocity. They’re waking up.

There was a loud shriek and then a quieter huff behind him. The hairs on his neck rose as he turned slowly, watching the shark on the testing table stir. Tail twitching and crimson eyes dryly peeling open, the alpha woke with a start, blinding white light in his face. Haruka took no notice as his legs began to carry him towards the door to the staircase that led up to the platform over the water. He twisted the doorknob furiously, only to realize Nagisa, who was out on a coffee break, had the spare set of keys. Inhaling sharply, he turned to kick at the door without any interest about what was happening around him, until he heard a gravelly voice pierce through the numbing static.

“Haruka.”

It was harsh yet smooth, and sent shivers down the doctor’s spine. He turned to face the source of the voice and froze when his eyes met a set of crimson. The raven-haired human stood as still as a deer in the headlights, brain’s gears turning and spinning at faster rates than he could comprehend. Everything was muddled and everything was numb. The back of his head told him to go find something to jar the door open, to save Ryugazaki, but the other side was fixated on the beast to the point of madness. He had spoken.

But Rei still needed to be saved.


	7. Day 6: The Predator

Haruka didn’t know what to do. His heart seemed to be making its way out of my chest and his mind functioned uselessly, making him unable to move. Everything swirled and dark spots fluttered over his eyes like tiny black moths attuned to the insanity around them. Blue eyes dark, he looked around for something useful to use to jam open the locked door. There was nothing other than useless lab tools in the room, tweezers and knives and pins, nothing that could truly jam a door open. The beast in front of him stirred, beginning to notice he was chained down to the table. Eyes growing wide, the redhead’s muscles tensed. He growled, beginning to thrash at the restraints. Haruka would have sedated him more, but the only thing he was focused on was saving Rei. He peered at the lab equipment in horror, his mind suddenly going blank. There was a box of tools under the table where the shark was beginning to yank himself free.

Dashing towards the table, he threw his leg out from under him, sliding under the moving surface to grab the box. His hip screamed in pain as he awkwardly slid across, but he couldn’t think of such things at the time. Wrenching the lid open he noticed a screwdriver on the bottom. Taking it, the doctor stood shakily, and began to run back to the door. The first screw was easy, quickly taken out of the slot on the handle as he made his way around. Disassembling the doorknob as quick as he could, he paid no attention to 01, who was seemingly victorious against the first set of leather restraints.

The shark gnawed his way through the material, and then with a quick slash, his tail was freed. Crimson eyes crinkled upwards with amusement, and his head turned slowly, catching his first unrestricted glance at the doctor who had kept him here. Smile fading to a scowl, the shark’s eyes went feral, and he slipped from the table and onto the floor. Arms out to hold him up, he growled, and got ready to spring at the besieged prey.

“Haru… ka…”

Haruka finished his disassembly work, then wrenched the metallic doorknob free from the socket and jammed him hand in, dragging the door open. Bolts and screws made eerie clinking noises as they slammed into the cement floor below, and Haruka took his first few steps of stairs before turning and gazing behind him. Blood froze in his veins when he noticed that 01 wasn’t on the table. The demonic creature rested on the floor, scarred arms positioned to run, as he hunched his back.

“Haruka!” The shark snarled and charged, arms dragging him faster than the raven-haired doctor could even want to imagine. Muscles flexing then tensing, the beast surged forward with a sense of awkwardness, being out of his natural habitat. Nether the less he was bloodthirsty, and out to kill.

Haruka dropped the screwdriver and bolted, sprinting up the stairs without a second thought. His shoulder slammed into the wall as he ran, the staircase slowly twisting as it ascended. He could hear the beast coming up behind him, breathing hard as he followed in pursuit. The alpha yanked himself gracelessly up each step, his slowly bruising tail slamming against the edges agonizingly. He hissed in pain as Haruka made it to the top, opening the door at the entrance and shot out onto the platform over the water’s edge.

Yanking off his coat and shirt while running, he kicked off his shoes with ease and dove beneath the surface. Water exploded everywhere as he vulgarly made contact, body hitting the rough surf as he blasted under, hair yanking back from the velocity in which he entered. Cerulean eyes on the body slowly drifting down, he noticed that Rei’s eyes were closed and his mouth slightly open. Kicking his legs strongly out behind him, he dragged his way through the water, arms extended towards his target. Sharks stirred at the bottom, their tails beginning to twitch as they woke. Haruka knew he wouldn’t have enough time if he didn’t hurry.

Grabbing onto Rei’s arm, he wrapped his own around him and shot upwards, his breath beginning to burn in his chest. The professor was like a dead weight, and with all his remaining strength Haruka drew nearer and nearer to the crystalline surface. Forgetting about the danger above, he heaved one last attempt as he heaved Rei out of the water, propelling him onto the platform painfully. As soon as Ryugazaki’s back hit the ground he let out a loud cough, hacking liquid out of his wet lungs.

Haruka grabbed onto the edge and inhaled sharply, limbs weak and trembling with exhaustion. He felt like jelly, unable to bring himself out of the water. As soon as he closed his eyes to rest his head in his arms he heard a quiet laugh then another body burst from the entryway. Shooting over the professor, the shark slammed into the water behind the raven-haired savior, and sank quickly. There was a moment of dreadful silence before something snatched his ankle, dragging him under in a flash.

The water stung his eyes and entered his lungs as he shouted below the surface, feeling claws shredding his skin as they let go. He gasped outwardly in shock, bubbles escaping from his mouth as he descended. The shark rose up in front of him, crimson eyes dark with blood thirst. Wrapping his hands around Haruka’s neck, he inhaled a breath of water and then frowned angrily, bubbles escaping from the slits opening on his skin. Haruka choked as he felt the pressure increase on his throat, he couldn’t fight nor struggle, limbs numb and hanging loosely beside him. He was going to die. That was the end. Before his eyes slipped shut he looked back once more at the creature who was his downfall. The predator that held onto his throat looked malicious, but as soon as he caught hold of Haruka’s gaze his grip slackened.

He stared blankly, eyes light with some intelligence he couldn’t understand. His vision was growing blurry, and he must have looked pitiful, but the creature was intrigued. With a scared and confused look the brute hissed wildly, letting go then grabbing a fistful of his own rusty hair. He thought for a moment as they both sunk, then with a perplexed look, he wrapped an arm under Haruka’s and swam up to the surface swiftly. By then the doctor was almost unconscious, feeling the rushed heartbeat of the predator’s chest against his cold ear. He remembered getting thrust out of the water and thumping deadly on the edge of the raised area, back against the surface as he stared up at the white lights. He remembered seeing Rei on his side staring wearily back, coughing and wheezing as he slowly lost consciousness.


	8. Day 7: The Name

He was floating, and yet he was rooted to the floor. The insides of Haruka’s mind flooded with black water, obscuring his view as he was pulled under. Deeper he was dragged, screaming soundlessly as dagger-like claws plunged deep into his legs. His body felt as if it were burning, searing from the insides of his lungs all the way out to the cuts on his skin. Gloomy water surrounded him, churning and swirling. It filled his lungs and held him back against his will, yet Haruka felt strangely calm. He would have shouted for help, he would have struggled against the claws at his ankles, but he didn’t. The unconscious doctor felt safe in the claws of his enemy.

Crimson light the color of a man’s blood exploded throughout the black, and ghostly silhouettes darted around the edges of his mind, just on the corners of his eyes. Paranoia would have taken a toll on him, but the beast drifting close to him scared the others away. He blended in well with the red, eyes flashing and claws dragging at his sides. Every few seconds he’d sneak a glance at Haruka, then dart away. The raven-haired man floated throughout the nothing, and then slowly started to disappear.

“I think he’s waking up, Rei.”

“Dr. Nanase!”

Cerulean eyes blinked heavily open, only staying exposed for a second before drooping back. He stirred, wrenching his cold shoulders off the ground and huddling on his side. The air felt cold around him, and every movement seemed to be excruciatingly painful. Was he alive? Waking slowly from his deep slumber, Haruka coughed, regaining feeling in his stinging lungs. Muscles lining his neck screamed in pain as he stretched and forced him to stop. The room looked hazy around him, and only then did he realize he was covered in blankets from head to toe, hair dry against his face, as a space heater rested near him. For a second he was unsure what to say, but as soon as he saw Rei’s relieved face he let a reassured smirk play at his lips.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes,” Ryugazaki nodded, fixing the comfortingly familiar glasses on his face. “After you lost consciousness Nagisa found us and got us off the loft.”

Haruka nodded, wincing as the bruises on his throat moved slightly. He had forgotten about them and when he looked down he noticed bandages wrapped around a couple red gashes on his ankle. There was a moment of tense silence before Haruka truly remembered what happened. Blood freezing in his veins, he sat, ignoring the blaring pain in his muscles. The shark had let go of him, and even stranger, saved his life. Rei’s violet eyes met his as they shared the silent memory.

“He saved me.” Haruka murmured stoically, unable to think of anything else. The professor leaned back and rested on the palms of his hands.

“He did.”

Haruka said no words as they all remained silent. There was a splashing behind him and he looked over to see the sharks circling the top of the tank. He stood, and without another word he limped over to the staircase, a blanket wrapped around his shoulders for protection. Rei went after him instantly, grabbing his hand with a horrified look on his face. Haruka must have looked insane; five minutes after waking going to the place where they had both nearly met their fates.

“What are you doing?” He demanded angrily, staring into the doctor’s apathetic azure eyes.

“I need to see something.” Haruka yanked his hand free and headed up the stairs, shutting the door behind him. Rei stood there in shock, unable to comprehend what was going on. He wanted to go after the raven-haired male, but somewhere in the back of his mind a voice was telling him to stay there and let Haruka do what he needed to do.

The doctor trudged up the endless stairs painfully, stopping a few times to catch his breath or rest his ankle. When he finally made it to the top he was resigned, yet determined. Dropping the thick blanket on the floor, he lumbered over to the wall and unlocked another door that led to the food-retainer. The inside was an icebox, filled with fish of all shapes and sizes. He unhooked a dangling mackerel and frowned. Heading out to the edge of the platform, he held the fish against him, sitting down painfully and keeping as far away from the edge that could still be seen. Holding the fish out, he spoke exhaustedly.

“I know you’re down there.” He let go with one hand. “It’s alright; I know you can understand me.”

There was a commotion under the surface, and from below in the dark waters he could see bubbles rising to the surface. Waves rocked along the edges of the glass and a silhouette neared the top of the deep blue water. A sharp dorsal fin broke through the top, and neared him slowly. The doctor’s heartbeat skipped in his chest, and suddenly everything was calm.

A crimson head rose half-way out of the water, fin-like ears pointing straight up and scarlet eyes on the fish in Haruka’s hand. 01 floated there calmly, eyes fixated on the prey. His gaze darted from the fish to the human’s eyes then back down under him.

“You came.” Haruka breathed quietly, and gazed into the beast’s bloody eyes. They narrowed back at him only slightly before he swam closer to the platform where the other was sitting. There was a cold silence before the opened his mouth and spoke.

“… Is that poisoned?” He inquired, voice calm and smooth. Haruka gaped for a moment before setting it down and sliding it to the edge of the floor slowly.

“No.” He pulled his arms back slowly and stared straight into the beast’s seemingly disciplined eyes. It was his only moment to get the most important detail out of his famished rescuer; the shark seemed to trust him at the moment, and he didn’t know when that would ever happen again. “Can I ask your name?”

The animal calculated his request for a fraction of a second, then grabbed onto the fish with both arms, pulling himself out of the water slightly before dragging it under with him.

“Rin.”


	9. Day 8: The Reconciliation

Things died down after that. Not in a sense of tension, but the sharks were less agitated, less feral. They trusted Haruka to a point now, but nothing other than food. The doctor had decided he wouldn’t tell Ryugazaki about his encounter with the alpha so aptly named Rin, in fear he might think up something crazy like trying to communicate with them. The insane professor had already fallen in the tank once, and then after Haruka made a law that he couldn’t even enter the platform over the water anymore; he would be left in charge of anything related in the sorts. And he took advantage of it.

It had been only a day since he went up there, but he felt if he delayed any longer the bond he’d established with the sharks would die away. It was maddening, waiting until mealtime to go up there and feed them, only to spare few words with the alpha. Something about that creature struck a chord inside him, and although he felt sick to his stomach with fatigue, he’d go up anyway. As soon as he finished the meal he had ordered outside in the building’s cafeteria he stood. Rei looked up silently from his own tray, a shadowy, foreboding look in his violet eyes. The professor wanted to follow Haruka up to the surface of the water, but after yesterday’s display all he felt like doing was chastising him for his reckless exhibition of desire for returning to that sacrilegious place. It was preposterous; no regular person would want to walk back over his deathbed. But Ryugazaki didn’t complain.

The doctor was becoming feverish, a fervent light to his cold azure eyes. Although nothing had changed physically, the man was different in the way he spoke. Without words he watched the shaking man leave, setting his tray on the ledge next to the door and grabbing a warm lab coat to wrap around himself. Haruka hated those coats, and yet he had to endure them for the sake of staying warm. He looked back at Rei indistinctly, then turned and headed to the door. He didn’t waste any time shivering as he trudged up the stairs.

The light went on in the entryway and he pushed open the door, eyes scanning the ominously still water. It stood stagnant with its murky blue color, making him unable to see anything below two feet. Brain as slow as his feet, he entered the icebox and dragged out the largest tuna he could gather in his weak arms. It wasn’t as heavy as he was sick, but the sharks needed to be fed, and this was more than plenty. With a resolved look in his eye he fell to his knees at the edge of the platform and sat down, scooting closer to the water than ever before.

“Dinner time,” He shouted heaving the fish with all of his remaining strength into the blue. It sunk for about four feet before the water started rippling and bits of shadowy tails appeared in his line of sight. He watched closely, counting the seconds in his head as they devoured their meal. It lasted almost a minute before the waves died down and the bodies disappeared from view. Haruka felt a tinge of disappointment weight down his chest, and his eyes fell to his feet. The one called Rin didn’t seem like he wanted to join him today.

He lay on his back, staring up at the white light as it twinkled overhead. Ebony eyelashes obscured his view as they fell; giving him a languid expression as he absentmindedly threw his feet over the edge and dangled them in the water. He forgot himself for a moment, and everything about where he was. The sickness he was obtaining gave him a sense of deliria, and before he knew it he was almost asleep.

That was until something sharp stabbed him in the foot.

Throwing himself backwards he shoved himself onto his arms, staring at the thing staring at him. Crimson eyes were locked on his toes, and a frown was set on his face. Stray scales dripped from his lips as he so intensely scrutinized the unknown. Rin had arrived.

“You scared me.” Haruka told him forwardly, his usual blank look returning once again. Something other than nausea stirred in his stomach, and he would never lower himself to calling them butterflies. That was a thing Ryugazaki would say. His azure eyes locked on the alpha, which looked back up at him with an outright loafing look.

“Sorry,” the creature yawned, stomach starting to digest his meal. Rin’s blood-colored eyes were as tired as the doctor’s, heavy purple rings beginning to indicate many sleepless nights. He treaded water for a moment before going back and poking at Haruka’s feet. The beast looked so intrigued, the foreign means for transportation alien to him. Intelligent eyes scanned over each of his ten toes, and that made the raven-haired male smile.

“Interesting?” He offered, knowing the beast would understand him. Rin’s unearthly crimson eyes flashed up to him and without a word he nodded surely, hair falling limply over his nose. He was so close, and Haruka could now make out each feature from his pupils to every scar on his face. The marine biologist didn’t know whether he was more impressed at his findings than the other. They shared so little words, and yet everything was a major breakthrough after another. He wanted to say more, but oddly his head swirled with emptiness; everything around him was a big mesh of haze. There were no words he could think of saying to the creature. Apparently, the other had noticed.

“Oi, Haru, what are you looking at?” His fin-like ears dropped as an agitated cat’s would. Haruka’s face instantly went red and he stared at the other in shock. Rin had mentioned him by name, and even better, a nickname. Heart fluttering in his chest, the cerulean-eyed human gaped.

“Nothing,” He turned his head away quickly and childishly to prevent the other from seeing him, instantly reminding him of his childhood years. That seemed to amuse the shark to some extent, and he shrugged humanly, an unsatisfied disdain breaking across his scarred face.

“Liar.”


	10. Day 9: The Lights

Haruka stared into the water from his place at the top of the platform. After he seemed to make acquaintance with the beast, Ryugazaki had decided it would be the best time for one-on-one action. Of course he himself couldn’t be there due to the doctor’s new rules. Until the professor learned how to swim, he would not be allowed up the stairs. It was tedious to an extent, but the marine biologist didn’t mind. In fact he enjoyed it, being alone with his work. People bothered him too much when he worked, he couldn’t think straight.

Checking his watch, he noticed that it was midnight. The sharks hadn’t resurfaced in a couple hours since Rin had turned tail and left after his accusation. He didn’t seem that upset, but Haruka couldn’t be sure, everything was too uncertain with them. They were an unpredictable species too dangerous to be experimented on. There were too few things known about them, and with their current trustworthy situation, the raven-haired human didn’t want to accidentally screw up and ruin it for the both of them. They had almost died once; Haruka didn’t feel like being in another predicament either. It drained the little energy he had to be so stressed out.

Tapping his pen on his notepad, he yawned, tired of taking notes. There were really no notes to take; nothing was happening. He stared down into the water, unsure of whether he should call out to Rin or not. If the shark was sleeping then waking him wouldn’t be the right way to go, but standing there bored wasn’t a fun route either. He checked the date under the timer on his watch, realizing he didn’t even know what day it was. The clock told him it was the fifteenth of December. That couldn’t be right. He was shocked; it had been nine days since he had arrived at the lab, nine days since he’d known the sharks. It felt like some sort of eternity, but in a sense, near-death experiences could do that to you. A smirk drew at his face; he couldn’t believe it was almost the end of the year. Time seemed to stand still, as still as the gloomy water before him. But just like the water, it moved when its inhabitants were awake.

His legs were beginning to ache, so Haruka sat, wrapping his feet under him to keep them warm. He had decided not to wear shoes around the lab anymore, they were uncomfortable to him; but subconsciously it was only because Rin found human feet so fascinating. Yawning loudly, he set his notes on the floor and stared up at the lights. They were so blinding and dark. Maybe that’s why Rin always looked so exhausted, he thought, because he couldn’t sleep. Pulling out the radio in his pocket, he called down to Rei.

“I’m going to turn the lights off up here, don’t freak out.” He buzzed then set down the radio, not waiting for a response. Lumbering over to the control panel, he flipped it open and pulled a couple of switches, smirking satisfied as each light shut off quickly and efficiently. Suddenly the room was dark, the only light emanating from the floor below him. The light refracted through the tank and up onto the ceiling, casting an eerie glow as white and blue waves swirled around in lazy patterns. It was soothing, and before he knew it he found himself lying back on the floor staring up exhaustedly.

Beside him the water rippled, and out of the corner of his eye he watched as the rim of a crimson head surfaced. Scarlet eyes stared at him for a second, but when he didn’t move—out of involuntary apprehension—they moved from him to the ceiling where the blue light reflected off of the dome-like top. They opened wider, and all of Rin’s head slipped out of the water as he gazed at the scene. The gills on the base of his neck puffed out a weak vapor into the air before folding back into stiff unusable lines. Haruka would have taken time to marvel at the functions of them, but he found himself too caught up in Rin’s expression. It was far beyond his regular appearance; he looked almost childish with awe. It was something of a spectacle.

Before he realized it, he began to yawn widely, tears forming at the corners of his eyes as he took in the breath his brain had been craving. He didn’t even notice that he had caught the other’s attention as he rolled onto his side, holding up his head as he drifted off. It was surprising how easily he could sleep there, considering he was over almost fifty feet of water. If something here to happen and he fell there would be no saving him then, and yet this place seemed to be the safest place in the whole lab. There was a sense of security drifting through the air with the azure lights, and it sent him straight to sleep, for he didn’t even know when he lost consciousness.

Bloody eyes stared at his human body for a long time before Rin swam closer. Haruka laid there, eyes shut as he rested, and it made the other drop his guard. The shark knew when he was being watched, but for some reason he didn’t care. He’d usually snap but… the human was different. There was a feeling of unease along with his ocean-colored eyes, and it worried the alpha, but he couldn’t help liking it. If he was the first to say, Haruka was the only person, human or shark, to seem to take so much interest in him. Being honest, the only time Rin was ever needed was for stately affairs pertaining not even to him. It was aggravating, and left him with a bitter taste in his mouth. Now that he was caged within the lab, he felt as alive as ever, even if it meant to be kept in human captivity. He sighed, feeling his stiff shoulders drop. He was relishing the fighting too much; they all needed to get out.

Eyes drifting back to the raven-haired human, he felt a weight in his stomach. It seemed, in all reality, he didn’t want to leave. That was enough to worry him in the least. Haruka was too interesting a person to be removed from his usually dreary life. It’s not every day a shark gets to see the surface world and survive the trip, that was, even if he was going to live through this experience. The future looked bleak in all of their eyes, even if the sharks were trying to stay positive. It was a challenge, one Rin that would take head on.

As he gazed at Haruka he watched his whole future change. Something about that human would alter the happenings to come, and the alpha wasn’t sure whether that would be good or not. It was unsettling, but too late to change. He blinked twice, and then came to the edge of the water where the platform jutted out. Haruka was sleeping on the edge, and Rin could now hear his quiet breathing as his chest rose and fell. Darkness loud with the echoing of his heart, the redhead pulled his arm from the water and out to the doctor’s face. His fingers trembled as they stopped before his dry flesh and he pulled back; he wanted to know how the other’s dry skin felt, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Humans were just as dangerous as he was, possibly more so.

He inhaled sharply as his hand drew farther back, slowing his beating heart. Haruka remained unconscious as his hand fell from his side, fingers dangling in the water. Rin stared at it for a minute before cautiously taking it in his and drawing it out of the water. As soon as he rested it on the side of the platform, claws gently receding from the smooth skin, Haruka stirred, eyes blinking open. The doctor’s blurry gaze drifted around the tank and he sighed, rolling over, as he saw nothing.


	11. Day 10: The Luminescence

Haruka woke with a start as the sound of splashing reverberated throughout the dark room. Everything was pitch black, the color of the darkest nights. Unable to see a thing, he sat up; something soft and thick rolling off his shoulders. Feeling around, he caught the edge of a blanket in his thin fingers, pulling it back up as he woke exhaustedly. He stretched with vigor, unable to remember a time when his shoulders weren’t aching, and turning towards what he hoped to be the door. Black nothing swirled around him, but he remembered falling asleep on the side facing the door, or so he had hoped. The lights from the floor below them were all black, signaling that everyone was sleeping below. It was unnerving, being unable to see around him. He didn’t know why he felt the urge to get up, but when he did he felt uneven. The pure nothingness skewed his step, causing him to stumble forward. Without any idea of where he was going, Haruka stepped on something that he felt was the edge of the door-frame, but when he went to put his foot down, there was nothing there.

Heart kicking up three notches, he wheeled back, arms flailing out behind him for weight, but it was too late. Slipping off the edge of his earth, Haruka went spiraling down into the water below. In his descent, he gasped and pulled forward, trying to catch the railing. Moving in too close, his forehead caught the platform and a splintering crack echoed throughout the room. He remembered pain shooting up his forehead and neck as he hit the surface of the water. It seared throughout his body and blood trickled deep into the water from the gash of his forehead. Arms going numb, Haruka struggled to understand what was happening. He moved around sluggishly, unsure of whether he was underwater or unconscious. Everything around him was black, and then, there was light.

Through his hazy half-lidded stare, he watched languorously as tiny slits of teal light twinkling fluorescently in rows of five headed towards him. It was a dream, the lights moved around him in circles, only stopping when one came closer, and he felt something glide by his sides. They were arms. The black got a tight grip on his immobile frame and he felt himself being lifted up. His lungs now were beginning to make themselves known, screaming wildly at him for air as he got pushed upwards. That’s when it hit him that was drifting underwater, bleeding out slowly. Eyes shooting open; his vision focused on the shining outline of the inside of an eye, than another one. He gasped inwardly; it was one of the sharks, lit up to become attune to the night through bioluminescence. The interior of its gills glowed faintly with a turquoise light and the inside rim of his eyes where the skin usually turned rosy. The liquid inside of their organs must have secreted some sort of luminescence for the dark, because they seemed to be the only ones who could see when he could not.

Before he knew he had forgotten his breath over scientific findings, he was thrown out of the water with a tremendous force. Nostalgic as it was, his back still didn’t like landing on the surface the same way twice. He felt his lungs pop slightly as he turned over, but that wasn’t the end. The shark that had recused him leaped out of the water after him, sliding along the surface towards his wet body. His eyes blinked rapidly, and the black circles that could be seen over the feint glow moved around without hesitation. He seemed to be looking for something, and it wasn’t long before the doctor felt the blood trickling down his face. Some mess he had gotten himself into, again.

He gave up his inner argument for the sake of not chastising himself as he watched the glowing eyes of the shark turn, along with its head, as he called out over the water, where more heads bobbed above the surface watching attentively.

“Gou, he’s bleeding and I think he’s unconscious, what do I do?” There was a crack at the end of the sentence as his rescuer called out, sounding as familiar as the sharks came. He turned his head back and rested his hands on the human’s face. “This is the second time I’ve had to save you, you hopeless bastard.”

Haruka smiled weakly, feeling the urgency of the situation decrease rapidly. He almost wanted to laugh, seeing that the inside of Rin’s mouth glowed dimly as well as the rest. “Actually you tried to kill me the first time.”

Rin sat there for a minute, eyes dim as he thought tensely. “You asshole! No air-breathing creature in their right minds would walk blindly straight into a pool!”

“Why would you care?” Haruka coughed, feeling blood spatter his throat. Something wasn’t right, he felt light headed, but he knew head wounds bled more than any other type. Rin was acting out, and it was unsettling. Haruka was a doctor called here only to do experiments on them, and yet the creature had this fascinatingly extraordinary attachment to him already. Maybe it was a product of Stockholm syndrome, or maybe it was something entirely different. He knew it was different, because the moment he said those words, Rin’s fluorescent glowing lit up five times brighter, and turned a deeper blue. The one called Gou stopped in her tracks as she leaned against the edge, mouth wide. Haruka didn’t know what to think of it, there were many reasons why fish lit up in the darkest waters whether to attract prey or dare he think, mates.

There was a small bit of stuttering before he felt something rub the blood off his forehead. Unable to see anything but the light emanating from the sharks, he focused his hearing. There was a quiet mumbling off in the distance from the other two, and Gou had pulled aside Rin and was frantically trying to communicate with him inaudibly. Haruka was beginning to tire; eyelids falling as he gradually lost blood. He didn’t even have the energy to call out to one of them as he felt everything slip to the side. He opened his mouth, ears aching from the echoing voices of the two of them. The lights died away as the haze took over, and he twitched.

“Call Rei,” He grunted softly, catching their attention as he remembered the radio resting on the floor somewhere around them. “There’s a radio on the floor somewhere, press the red button and talk.”

There was an awkward heaving movement beside him as hands glided around the floor, stopping as Rin grabbed the rectangular machine. Eyes locked on the object in hand, he fiddled around for a moment with the alien device as he attempted to work it. His sister snatched it away, pressing the button with ease as the radio sparked to life, snapping and sizzling as the white noise came through.

“Hello?” Was the last thing Haruka heard before blood-loss knocked him out. He wasn’t sure whether it was Gou’s voice or Rin’s or Rei’s, but he was glad he would finally be able to be dragged out of that wretchedly haunting laboratory, even if he was on a gurney.


	12. Day 11: The Hospital

“That’s crazy Haruka,” Makoto’s worried tone sounded throughout the hospital room, he stared at the bed-ridden marine-biologist with apprehensive green eyes, a frown playing at his lips. “You were in that lab for far too long; you don’t know what you’re saying.”  
Haruka hissed inwardly and turned his face away, twiddling his thumbs obviously frustrated. He had been trying to explain to his friend what he had encountered with ‘the shark’ at the lab, but he didn’t seem to buy it. Forest eyes matched his with a certain burning behind them, and the raven-haired doctor didn’t want to meet them. Makoto Tachibana thought he was crazy. He kept repeating “sharks don’t talk”  
and “they can’t fall in love with you”. It was infuriatingly repetitive, and Haruka didn’t know what else to say. He knew what he saw; the head wounds and near-drowning’s weren’t the cause of his seeming craziness. Rin’s bioluminescence lit up tenfold when he had asked him why he cared, it flushed blue, and through observation and understanding of the illumination he knew what it meant. Rin had blushed, it was a simple chemical reaction, but it wasn’t human blushing like when you complemented on someone on their hair. The type of reaction Rin had was beyond anything slightly friendly.

“You just don’t understand.” He growled quietly, teeth clenched together. “Rin lit up like a Christmas tree, and you know how bioluminescence works with fish, Makoto.”

The male rubbed his hands down his face tiredly, eyes closing as he tried to understand the other’s point of view. It didn’t help that Haruka had bandages wrapped around his forehead. They had told the medics that he had fallen and slammed his head on a table; Haruka nearly fell over with relief when they believed them. He was now lying in his hospital bed, now unsure if he was glad he was here. Makoto was being unreasonable, each time saying something about him being injured.

“Haruka,” he murmured quietly, eyes staring straight into the doctor’s. “Have you… acquired feelings for this animal?”

Haruka’s blood ran cold, and his eyes were wide, dead. He stared down at his lap, the white of the sheets hypnotizing him with their nothingness. Unsure how to respond, he swallowed dryly. He hadn’t thought of that, and just the words terrified him. Haruka was known for his unlimited apathy, it was one of his strong suits, and notably the reason he was picked for the job. He would never have fallen for anything before, but something was different this time, it was off. The creature had fallen for him, not the other way around, and it was almost a bit heartwarming, in a disturbing sense.

Makoto stared at him expectantly, and Haruka knew he’d have to give a response. His best friend knew when he was lying, so bending the truth was the only change he got.

“They’re people too Makoto,” he started off, eyes dark. “Rin and Gou and the rest of them. It’s like I’m experimenting on a human being, do you know how disgusting that feels?”

Makoto drew back for a second, resting his elbows on his knees and holding his face. “You’re avoiding the question Haruka.”

“He saved my life twice what am I supposed to say about that?” Haruka hissed back, temper flaring. He stared back at the other with a cold expression, mouth a taut line and eyes narrowed. Something inside of him screamed to protect Rin, and he never once ignored his instincts. They never once led him in the wrong direction.

“You can’t do this Haru.” Makoto whispered sadly. “You know what will happen if you do.”

“What will happen?” Haruka responded coldly. He refused to think of the future, it wasn’t something he needed to do. Thinking about the future was wasting time; it was the present that he lived in and firmly believed in that. Knowing there was consequences for what he was implying he quietly waited for Makoto to answer his question, even if he dreaded the answer.

“Bad things,” Was all he concluded, standing up from his chair and gathering his coat up from the back. Haruka sat there in shock, staring at him as he put it on, getting ready to leave. It wasn’t like Makoto to be so vague, but Haruka knew everything that he was implying. There were too many outcomes to his predicament, but it was too late to back out. He stared at the wall blankly as Makoto turned to slide the door open, looking back quietly one last time.

“I’ll trust your judgment, Haruka.” His voice was as stern as he possibly could muster. “What you do is up to you.”

He shut the door without another word, leaving Haruka alone with his unsettling thoughts. Cerulean eyes dead with anxiety, the doctor leaned against the steel frame of the bed, feeling more exhausted than he had in a long time. Letting out a long breath, he closed his eyes and rubbed his face, sinking back into a cloud of his own forced denial.


	13. Day 12: The Bereavement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw death but not death  
> tw rei's being a butt

Haruka was released from the hospital that evening, the doctors stating that he should rest his head and not pull at the five stitches lacing through the thin skin. Nagisa had come to pick him up, stating that Ryugazaki had made some great discoveries in the time he was gone. That pleased the doctor to some extent, but as he sat shotgun in the blonde’s miniature car he only felt that dread he had been repressing return. It was almost excruciating at that point and he had to strain himself both mentally and psychically to get through the conversations he was spouting left and right. He went on to tell him about the ways they communicate and so forth, stopping every few seconds with a distant look in his eyes. Haruka turned to face him at that point, his cold azure eyes scanning the other’s for something. Hazuki sounded like he was hiding something; every few seconds straying from what he was saying and avoiding Haruka’s questions as to how Rei had figured that out. The rest of the car ride they drove in silence, the short blonde male frowning slightly. It bugged the passenger, but there was little more to say. He knew something was up, but he’d figure it out as soon as the got there, no need in stressing the driver too much.

When they arrived at the lab Haruka walked past the clerk at the main desk, flashing his ID card to gain access then got a few warm welcomes and ‘hope you get better soon”s as he paced further into the building. People were friendly and kind, all unaware of what was in their basement. They had been told the same thing as the medics, but they knew a little bit more. They knew Haruka was special, that he was there for top secret reasons better than the others’ jobs could ever be. Others treated him with courtesy, but nothing more.

Shrouded in shadows and flickering lights, the steel plated door sat cold and ominous. Haruka punched in the overly-extensive passcode then watched vacantly as the heavy entrance opened up, fluorescent light flooding the dark walkway. He almost made it in bored until he heard a terrified shriek explode throughout the air. Heart speeding up, the doctor almost felt dizzy as he sprinted down the short flight of stairs to the next door at the bottom. Quickly punching in a different code, protection high in this place, he broke out into a cold sweat. The screeching was getting louder, and suddenly a metallic clanking was heard. The door opened too slowly, and Nagisa attempted to grab the doctor’s arm, giggling something anxiously. Haruka yanked his arm free, leaping out onto the platform behind the door. He saw nothing other than the three steps to the floor, along with the polished handrail and darkness. It was almost too empty until a noticeable thrashing inside the tank was seen.

Rin was slammed up against the glass, body smashing into it with full force as he screamed, claws tearing at the confinement. His eyes were bloodshot, and his voice hoarse, but he screamed and shrieked and cried until Haruka’s ears hurt. He was only there for a second until he noticed the other was staring at something outside of the tank. Rin’s fingertips bled into the water as he forced against the glass, straining it with long deep gashes. His voice cracked more than once, and Gou swam beside him, pounding on the glass with her hands, imperceptibly crying as sharks apparently did. The orange-haired shark was on the other side of their alpha, his face contorted with rage as he slammed bloody fists into the wall. He hissed and barked and screamed with the others, dukes beating against the stressed obstacle. Haruka had no idea what was going on, eyes whirling and hears hurting as their earth-shattering screams rung around the room.

That’s when he noticed something was off; there were only three of the sharks in the tank. And they were absolutely unexpectedly outstandingly livid. It clicked instantly, and Haruka dropped everything he had. Sprinting without a second thought, he dashed around a bookshelf as tall as the ceiling and there and behold was Rei, apathetically experimenting on a fully restrained shark. He smiled defiantly as Haruka stood, watching him in shock. The silver-haired shark, the smallest of the set, attempted to thrash at his bindings. His eyes were wide with unadulterated terror; trying to scream as gag in his mouth blocking his airways stopped him. The doctor was sick to his stomach. Prof. Ryugazaki was experimenting on how they breathed out of water, and it was killing him. He held the shark’s gills open with clips, but they were ineffectual as 04 lashed at the leather straps.

“Ah, Haruka.” Rei smiled at him as if nothing was happening. He set down his full notepad on the table next to him and held his hand out. “Come here and witness this.”

Haruka couldn’t move. His feet were rooted to the floor as he watched the young silver-haired shark fought for his life. Pale azure eyes began to roll back into his head as oxygen left him. Haruka knew how it felt, how bad his lungs must’ve burned, how painfully they searched for something they couldn’t obtain. 04’s arms grew numb and he fell flat against the bed as his chest deflated with pure agony. His eyes watered and drooped shut as Haruka finally got his voice back. He swallowed quickly then shook his head, screaming at Rei.

“You’re killing him!” Haruka barked furiously, standing as a shadow in the light of the tank where the others smashed against the glass. Rei’s violet eyes went dark under his crimson spectacles, and he readjusted them on his face. The doctor looked just like one of those earsplitting beasts with those burning eyes it was almost comical.

“That’s not very beautiful, Dr. Nanase.” He spoke back in a monotone, a shadow crossing over his face as the little shark went limp. He didn’t even care, it was better to have a dead one to test anyways. Rei always had a thing for looking inside of animals. He ran his hand along the unconscious shark’s dried shoulder and Haruka’s eyes went dark. The doctor knew the kid was dead, and the others beside him cried and screamed and shrieked, gouging and crashing into the glass. The whole place was alive with negative energy, and Haruka could only succumb to the influence of the terror.

Before he knew it his body was alive with instinctual reflex. Despite his head wound, he dashed around the table, barreling straight into the mad professor. Rei gasped as Haruka’s fist made contact with his chest, shoving him back into the bookshelf. Slamming his head against the shelf, Rei fell to the floor, rubbing his neck as Haruka turned to face the machinery behind him. Locating the defibrillators on their hooks, he quickly pulled them out of their resting state and flickered on the switches. They began buzzing with static as Rei stood back up. He looked angry, and attempted to pry them away from Haruka as he began to take action. The doctor elbowed the professor in the ribs hard, and then used his shoulder to shove him back. Hearing a satisfying bang, Haruka stood forward, feeling the other drop unconsciously like a fly behind him. He grabbed the life saving devices lying idly and put them on his hands, holding them up in the air as the sharks floated silently, eyes glued to the scene.

“Clear.” Haruka shouted and slammed his hands into the correct locations on the animal’s chest. His whole body bounced up with the shock, but there was no life signs yet. He heard a quiet inhale in front of him from the blond assistant who stood quietly behind the bookshelf, unable to speak. Without another thought Haruka lifted his hands again and applied the process a second time, feeling time stop completely.

“Clear.” Still no response. The sharks were beginning to fester now, quietly swishing their tails back and forth as they waiting for their own to wake from his comatose state. Rin was the only one who stayed still, hands on the glass as he watched the two through hollow eyes. It seemed like everything was stopping, and everything was muted except for the desperate tone of the human’s voice as it resonated deafeningly throughout the tank.

“Clear!” Haruka was resilient this time, shoving his hands down hard on the shark’s vital points. His body rose with the shock, but it didn’t move. Why didn’t he move? At this point the doctor was beginning to sweat. The shark hadn’t been out for that long. His heart should have started up as soon as the first shock was applied. Maybe it was something different with his body, maybe it was because it wasn’t human.

“Clear.” He gave a final attempt, and sent electricity flying throughout the shark’s body. He jumped for a second, and then Haruka witnessed something he thought took too long to arrive. 04’s eyes shot wide open as his body sprang to life. Taking off the machines and shutting them down, Haruka yanked the gag from the shark’s mouth, ears relishing in the sound of the other’s breath of life. He sputtered and coughed and gagged as he inhaled quickly, lungs refueling his blood.

“Nagisa! Open the door to the tank!” Haruka barked orders at the blonde, and he obliged quickly. Releasing the retaining straps on the shark’s hands and tail, he lifted his light body up and began to make his way towards the freshly unlocked door. Sprinting up the stairs was no problem as adrenaline surged through his veins. He needed to get the other into his natural state again, and that could only be achieved by throwing him back into the water. The creatures could breathe in air, but not as well as under water. He knew that for a fact. That’s why they lived there. As soon as 04 caught his fleeting breath he grasped onto Haruka’s shoulders and lifted his dangling head up.

“T-thank… you…” he gasped as the other looked down, using his shoulder to slam through the door. It flung open easily, and he rushed to the edge where the other three were waiting, arms open.

“Oh my god Nitori.” Gou gasped as Haruka set the shark into the large orange-haired one’s arms and they both proceeded to submerge quickly under the surface, followed by her. Haruka felt a wave of relief as he fell to his knees, shaking uncontrollably. Rin stayed behind for a fraction of a second, looking at the human with indebted eyes. He came up from the water as Haruka dropped his head over the edge, and grabbed his neck to support himself. The doctor watched in shock as the shark senselessly planted a kiss on his dry lips. He was too happy, too relieved to think of any other repayment. A second after it happened, Rin looked into his eyes with gratitude then fell back into the water.

“Thank you.” He breathed before submerging, leaving the other alone with his troubled, and inevitably stunned, thoughts. The only thing that was relevant to the situation was one reoccurring theme in his mind’s train of process.

He needed to get them out of there. Fast.


	14. Day 13: The Oath

Rei had woken up to face a not-so-happy Haruka. His violet eyes flickered open as Nagisa sprayed his face with water, leaning closely to make sure he was okay. At first he saw the blonde, leaning over him with a worried look on his face calling his name. His features were soft, telling the other he was fine as he sat up, rubbing his heard achingly. That’s he noticed Haruka standing in front of them with his arms crossed over his chest. The doctor’s eyes were stone-cold and hard, and he seemed to be tense as if something were about to happen. With a smirk, the other shooed his assistant to the side, asking for assistance as he painfully stood up. The room was ablaze with fluorescent light, blinding his sensitive eyes as he made it up on both feet, Hazuki holding his elbow for support.

“Dr. Nanase,” He nodded once out of pure retained dignity then looked at the empty table beside him with an irate scowl. “Where’s my patient?”

“Somewhere where you won’t be able to get him,” Haruka held up Rei’s set of keys to the door. They dangled off of his finger chiming as they banged into each other. It made a beautiful sound to the raven-haired doctor, a sound that ensured safety and protection for the sharks.

“Well that’s going to be a problem.” He sighed as he stretched his back, arms up in the air as if he had just woken up from a nap. “How am I going to gain any new data now?”

“Observation and documentation,” Haruka’s eyes narrowed angrily and he frowned, Ryugazaki was acting as if nothing bad had happened. He was acting erratic, and that dropped an unnecessary lead weight in the doctor’s already knotted stomach. Another stress would put him over the edge at this point.

“I guess my punishment can’t be avoided, now can it doctor?” He sighed then shoved his hands into the pockets of his crisp white lab coat, now dirty from its nap on the floor. “If you need me I’ll be outside in the cafeteria.”

He strolled by Haruka without another word, evading eye contact with his senior. As soon as the door shut behind him and a satisfying locking noise reverberated around the room the doctor let out the breath he was holding as slumped a bit. Everything was going wrong, and he had Makoto’s voice buzzing in his ears like a fly. Whatever you do is up to you. What was that supposed to mean? His friend didn’t seem like he cared whether or not Haruka gained feelings for the sharks, and yet he felt as if he was being judged by him. Makoto trusted him to do the right thing in his heart, and Haruka had already made up his mind. He was going to keep Rei from the sharks as long as he could, and maybe, someday, be able to free them without anybody stopping him. It was a fleeting dream, but he knew he could do it.

Without another thought in his head he found himself unlocking the door and shutting it behind him, heading up the stairs as he came up with every possible way he could help them escape. It was impossible in every one, each time he got caught somehow. There were government agents all over the building, with a helicopter landing on the roof. They checked every car that came in and out thoroughly. As he got to the top and opened the second door he sighed, rubbing his hand along the bandages still wrapped around his healing forehead. Sitting at the edge of the platform, he tossed a couple mackerel into the water and waited for the alpha to surface, the hazy memories of that last night out of his mind completely.

Rin’s head resurfaced quickly, and he gazed at Haruka with a look of grief and exhaustion. Nitori was going fine, but they knew the death toll would rise if they stayed there any longer. Crimson eyes scanned azure and they gazed at each other wordlessly as the time passed on.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Haruka asked as he rested his hand on his cheek, growing bored of all the tense silence. Rin’s eyebrows furled together as he tried to comprehend the question, and that’s when the other remembered he wasn’t human.

“That means ‘what are you thinking?’.” He reiterated for the other could understand what he was saying. Scarlet eyes grew dark and the alpha fell back into the water so only his head was showing above the dark surf. He had a perturbed look in his eyes that the doctor distinguished all too well.

“We’re going to die here.” Rin’s fire was gone, and he stared hollowly into the depths below him. His voice cracked as he whispered those ominous words that struck Haruka painfully. There was nothing else to say. Everybody knew the predicament they were all in.

“No you won’t.” Haruka responded with a blunt tone. Before he knew what he had said Rin swam up closer and slammed his bruised fist down on the edge of the platform next to him. That’s when he truly saw the look of pure desperation in his shattered eyes. The shark was on the verge of insanity, the look of fear so strong he could taste it.

“Gou is losing her mind, and she had a right to do so. I’m surprised we’re all not crazy yet!” He hissed weakly, his voice beginning to rise into a full-fledged shout. “Seijurrou is starving because he’s making us eat everything. The fool thinks we’re hungrier than him, and that he should do his duty to royalty which by now means nothing in this wretched place! Nitori was almost killed by that four-eyed freak! He’s shivering and shaking and nobody can get him to talk no matter what we do! I can’t protect them, you humans are too strong. As a prince I should do my duty and protect my people like my deceased father but I can’t! I’ll never follow in his kingly dreams; I’ll never be what he truly wanted to be! I can’t do anything but get us caught up in these messes!”

Tears began to streak down his face as he bashed his other fist into the ground, arms sharking from the rage building within him. Dots of liquid pattered onto the platform, and Haruka could only sit still as he watched the other break down.

“That’s right.” Rin whispered half-heartedly, eyes staring blankly at the surface below him. “It’s my fault we got caught. I was the one tearing holes in the nets, I was the one enraged because you humans are stealing all our food. Our kingdom has grown so goddamn poor, and I was too blinded to see the danger. It was me who got my arm tangled in the mesh as it got pulled to the surface. They came to save me, and they faced the price I gave to them. I’ll never forgive myself for putting them in this situation. If anything it should be me to die, not Nitori.”

Haruka felt his heart come to a grinding halt in his chest, and he leaned forward. Grabbing Rin’s face in both of his hands, he pulled the shark’s head up so that his tear-stained eyes faced the others’. There was a moment of heavy silence as the alpha regained his breath. What he said rang in Rin’s ears like a single fog horn on a silent night.

“I will not let you die.” Haruka’s eyes were resolute and without thinking of the consequences, he returned what had been given to him on the night before. Resting his lips on the sharks’, he tasted his salty tears as Rin’s body went limp in the water. It was something new and powerful and it sent both of them into a state of perseverance and determination. Rin was in awe at the feeling of the human’s warm lips on his, and he almost didn’t want that few seconds to end as Haruka held onto him. There was nothing more to say as he broke free, making sure he was still holding onto the other as he floated there in astonishment.

Rin’s mouth hung open slightly, and Haruka could see the sharp tips of each of his teeth, pearly and white. He almost felt as if he could trust the human, and as soon as that feeling budded into something more, he let out a choked sob and wrapped his arms around the other’s back, holding onto him for dear life as he sobbed into his shoulder. Ascended partially out of the water, his body felt the cold sting of the crisp inside air, but all of it was worth it as Haruka wrapped his arms around his scarred back. The warmth of the clothing sent shivers down his spine, but the shark kept on sobbing. He wept for his family and his own pitiful self as the human held onto him with the same force. It was something unlike anything anybody had witnessed before. The sharks heard him below, but they had known all along. From the depths came a new light to their predicament. Maybe they wouldn’t have to face their impending fate so quickly; maybe that human would be the one to save their lives.


	15. Day 14: The Professor

Haruka had spent the whole day going about his research as usual. To make it seem inconspicuous he had told Rei that he had been on the verge of discovering something new and to tell the truth it really wasn’t a lie. Rin had revealed some startling things in his meltdown the night earlier, and it had the human’s mind reeling. He was a prince, or at least that’s how he worded it, who got his friends roped into their current predicament via his fiery temperament. It was almost too strange to be true, what he was sobbing about overfishing and so forth. That shark had such a cryptic background it made everything he had learned so far look minuscule and redundant; only breaking the surface of what was to be discovered. Scientific nature was one thing, but a whole ecosystem filled with monarchy and prejudices and classifications. Thinking about it made Haruka shiver more than he should have, but it was just so amazing. He set the pencil he had in his hand down and stared at the drawing he was creating. It was another generic scale model of a shark, but this one looked especially like Rin.

He sighed, looking at the clock as it struck ten. Lately he had begun to grow more tired as the night drew near, and required more sleep than usual. Nagisa had said it was from stress, and he believed him. The overload was too much on his body, and with every waking minute he felt himself grow weaker. The near-death experiences didn’t help him either. If he didn’t get some sleep soon he felt as if he’d wither away to a mere nothing.

Stretching his tense shoulders, he winced as the tight pain in his muscles shot up his neck. Nothing could feel better than lying down, and he had requested for Nagisa to bring them mats to sleep on. His bed rested in the same spot as he had fallen asleep so many days ago under the tank. Warms blankets surrounded it like a nest and as soon as he felt his body hit the mat everything seemed to drain away; all with the exception of his looming fears. He sighed, azure eyes gazing up at the tank as his heavy head sunk into his pillow. Kicking his shoes and socks off, the doctor pondered his time here. That was something he liked to do often, marveling at everything he had learned. He threw his sweatshirt off and then dragged a blanket over him, concealing the fleeting heat. Head aching from a constant strain in his neck, he tossed and turned as he felt a migraine coming on. It was to be expected, he heaved a sigh.

Turning back so that he was facing the tank, Haruka’s eyes opened slightly in a gentle surprise as Rin swam by him then stopped as their gazes met. The shark wheeled backwards to be closer to him and he sank to the bottom of the tank, tail stirring up some of the dust at the bottom. He rested his arms on the identical cement barrier inside of the wall and gazed down at the human through drowsy crimson eyes. He yawned slightly, and Haruka’s face drew into a small smile as he watched miniscule bubbles escape the slits on his skin. They were both bushed, and both of them wordlessly agreed on it. It wasn’t too long before Haruka caught the other’s yawn and closed his eyes, nuzzling his head into the pillow as Rin watched. The alpha’s heart fluttered gently in his chest and he leaned his face against the glass, imperceptibly upset by the barrier in-between them. He watched the human fall into the depths of sleep for almost ten minutes until he felt his own eyelids droop, and he rested his head in his arms, softly drifting asleep.

***

The door slid open almost an hour after that, and Professor Ryugazaki stepped in carrying a bag of groceries in his hand. He and Hazuki had left earlier, buying for their time working there. What seemed to be every five seconds Nagisa would ask for some sort of a meal, and frankly the cafeteria was starting to become a little annoyed with his hourly visits. They had shopped for quite some time, the blonde being very uncharacteristically peculiar about his food choices. Rei had eventually given up and bought what he thought would be appropriate, and then they ended up back at the lab within the hour. As soon as the clock chimed eleven they were through the doors, the professor being very punctual.

As Ryugazaki set down the bag, he noticed that almost all of the lights were off, meaning that Haruka must have fallen asleep. His drawing of a shark lay vacant on the table, left out for the other to observe the fine details he had put into it. There were little facts around the picture, as if it were drawn as a blueprint. Pieces were mapped out and every part of the shark seemed to be recorded. The violet-eyed professor played with his glasses, a bit irritated with himself and the other. Dr. Nanase had told him to study them through observation and documentation, but whenever he turned around everything he had learned was already written down by his senior, always one step ahead of him. That’s why he had tried to do that experiment on the other shark, and frankly it was fun. Haruka’s face was simply priceless; although the crook in his neck told him to watch out during later proceedings. There was just something about that man that made the professor’s blood boil. He didn’t know if it was the sheer perfection of his work, or the solemnity in which he did it, but it made the other want to snap his pencil whenever they were closely doing work together.

Haruka seemed to bond with the sharks in a way that he couldn’t, but something like that was not to be encouraged. He was picked for the job because he couldn’t bond with them, and yet there he was making friends and saving their lives without a second thought in the world. Rei felt his hands ball up into a fist; that wasn’t supposed to happen. He turned a corner with rage in his eyes then stopped as he witnessed something that would forever change his perception on the stoic scientist.

Doctor Haruka Nanase, the cold-hearted biologist, was resting with his face to the tank, head leaning on his arm so that he was as tall as the cement barrier when resting on his mat. His eyes were closed and he had a peaceful look on his face as he slept with his back to the outside world. The alpha male of the sharks rested just beyond the wall of the tank, head on his scarred arms. He slept so close to the wall of the tank he was touching it, and he faced in Nanase’s direction, as peaceful as the human next to him. They both slept as if they were some sort of couple, and that sent Rei’s blood into a boiling rage. Fingernails digging into his skin, he fixed his glasses on his face, and glared down at them. That wretched bloody shark looked more tranquil than he ever had in the entire time in captivity, and it was all because of Haruka.


	16. Day 15: The Torment

The next morning was nothing but mundane procedures, working on the data they had already collected, and trying not to pass out. Nagisa was laying in the corner of the room taking another one of his famous three hour naps as Rei paced around the tank angrily, writing down more or less nothing. Everything he witnessed was now irrelevant, being already written down before. They knew everything they could possibly know already. The sharks were fast, agile creatures being able to swim at speeds up to sixty miles an hour. They had shoulders slightly more rounded and angled than a human’s, to make them propel through the water almost effortlessly. Communication was simple; there was a slot in their skull in the center of their foreheads, covered by a thin film of skin. It detected sonar from others, and through an unknown process, translated it. Rei thought it must have sounded like how a human keeps their mouth shut and attempts to speak; muffled and slightly understandable. Their tails were covered in thick grey scales, and gave them a leathery appearance, along with more human-like skin that must have been a product of mutation. He believed that they came from the same branch as people, except retaining their gills during the embryological stages and developing more tail-like features over the time humans became more adept to the land.

Being a scientist, that’s all he could come up with. When humans are procreated in their mother’s wombs, they surprisingly have gills and a tail. After time they lose those features, but some people were known to have mutations to change their structures. The sharks must have kept those gills, while hunting around in the water, and then developed lungs at the same time. They must have eventually passed their genes down with someone with a more tail-like structure. The beasts did have legs though, they were just smaller. The fins on the sides of their hips were actually their legs as the bone-structures from past x-rays showed. Their tail-bones were elongated, and they used both to swim around efficiently. Things were equal in balance to mammal and fish, and quite frankly the professor didn’t know what to classify them as.

He observed many things, from the concept of their creation to the flashy colors they sported. Their hair colors ranged from red, to orange, to silver; much different than and human’s he’d ever seen. Sure there were redheads and blondes, but nothing compared to the flamboyant airs they were putting on. Those colors must have been the best for their environment. The sand was grey, the sea-weed colors of the sunset, and more. Like how animals blend in to their surroundings to hunt and survive, the sharks must have done the same. Their claws and teeth were little to be awed by; they were beasts, predators, designed for the kill. They were intelligent and empathetic creatures, or at least that’s what he read one day while looking through his senior’s notes. Their species was more advanced than a human’s, as Haruka had worded it, being more capable of being able to fend for themselves without the need for their brain, which was approximately the same size and intellect as a human’s.

Disgusted with that thought, Prof. Ryugazaki stopped pacing around the tank and looked over at Haruka, who at the time was beginning to pack up and go out to the cafeteria. The three had a scheduled break coming up soon, the government requesting in a couple days that they go home and rest, considering the chain of recent misadventures they had been a part of. Haruka had looked indifferent as they were told, and Rei purely irritated. He wanted to find out more, his brain craved it. Everything they had learned was more than he ever could imagine finding out again about a new species in his life. He loved the fact that he could spend unlimited time with them, except the fact that they fancied his partner instead. Rei shrugged his shoulders trying to undo a knot in his muscles as he passed by the other, and then turned to look at him with a bored façade.

“What are you going to do over the mandatory cessation, Dr. Nanase?” He asked with an air of triviality, violet eyes running over the notes in the other’s pale hands. The other’s eyes seemed to go dark at the words and that had Rei smiling, so he did care about leaving them.

“Sleep,” He muttered blatantly, setting papers into folders and refusing to meet the other’s eyes. “Eat food that wasn’t processed in a government cafeteria.”

Prof. Ryugazaki chuckled then turned around to face the tank. “I can agree that it is absolutely revolting. But did you know there’s a grocery store only a mile from here?”

Haruka nodded, finally looking up from the work he was filing. Setting the folders down in a neat pile for later events, he pulled on his white lab coat, unclean from vacancy, and clipped his ID on the front of the pocket. His old grey sweatshirt looked a bit ragged, being the only thing he seemed to ever wear, and his white socks were gray on the bottoms. Rei scrunched his nose up at that, Haruka had a knack for never wanting to wear his shoes in the laboratory. He always said they were too loud and would scare the sharks away. Whatever his problems were his partner ignored them, having an assistant of his own with even weirder ticks as well.

As he regained his focus from scrutinizing the doctor’s appearance, he felt the said person pass him quickly, heading in the direction of the door that lead to the stairs. Eyes flashing open quickly, Rei turned around and nearly tripped as he wheeled in front of Haruka. A concerned face was thrown his way from the raven-haired biologist and he stood up straight, panting from his sudden sprint.

“I’m going to start another observational experiment,” He grabbed Haruka’s shoulders and turned him around. “Don’t feed them tonight, Dr. Nanase.” With that he let go and headed towards the door, knowing the other couldn’t refuse. Flickering off a few lights at the exit so that only the tank was lit, he opened the door, casting his long menacing shadow towards the doctor. Looking at him expectantly, he watched as Haruka paced slowly by the tank drawing attention.

He stopped and pressed his hand up against the glass, and stared at something he couldn’t see. Rin was pressed up against the glass out of the professor’s line of sight. He stared down at the pained doctor with a look of starvation in his eyes. His mouth was open and pleading, he had heard everything that was said between the two humans. Haruka’s mind instantly flashed to his face the night before, and how one of them was starving himself for their sake. The raven-haired scientist’s chest ached, and as Rin drew closer he wanted to relieve them of their famine within the second. Azure eyes stared into crimson with a look of sorrow and grief, and instantly the alpha knew there was nothing to help him. He dragged his claws down the barrier mouthing words that Haruka couldn’t understand but wanted to wholeheartedly. All he knew was that the others were suffering. Resting his forehead against the glass, his eyes flickered to the door, then to the hopeful prince. With a single tear forming on his eyelashes, he closed his eyes and mouthed ‘I’m sorry.’ He could see the physical aching in the other’s eyes.

“Dr. Nanase?” Ryugazaki’s voice reverberated around the room quietly, but it was earsplitting to the two bound together by certain fates. Haruka’s attention was torn from Rin’s in an instant, and he moved away from the glass, failing at keeping a stoic face.

“Alright.”


	17. Day 16: The Resentment

Haruka awoke with a start on the floor, sitting up so that he could stretch his back; he looked around for the others. The lab was empty, and with bare feet on the cold tiles, he scuttled across quickly. Making his way over to a table where papers were organized neatly, his cerulean eyes scanned a note left out for him. It was in Nagisa’s scrawling handwriting, and said something about both of them going out to a local coffee shop for a late breakfast. Late, Haruka smirked, that blonde kid never knew when to stop eating. Relieved at the fact that he was alone, he hurried back to his mat where he usually had his key hidden. He was going to feed them before the professor got back hoping he wouldn’t get caught.

Digging around in his mattress in its usual spot, he noticed a motion out of the corner of his eye. Turning his head while hunting for the key in his mat, Haruka watched as Rin quickly sank to his level, eyes dark and ribs showing. The doctor knew they were being malnourished from the start, but this was downright unacceptable. What did that insane professor think he was accomplishing by starving the rare test subjects he had. Haruka would be damned before he let him get his way. Catching his finger on something metallic, he grinned and pulled the key out of a dip in the mat then smiled at Rin, who looked less than unamused.

“Hurry and get to the top,” Haruka said through the glass. “I have to feed you quick.”

Rin’s eyes went wide and he nodded, before flashing away with an astonishing speed. He was going to tell the others. The doctor didn’t know how long the others were gone, so he had to make it fast. Ignoring the sting of his feet on the cold floor, he hurried to the door, unlocked it, and then sprinted up the stairs. Watch flashing seven, he felt his heart speed up. Rei was a very punctual person, if they were gone for long before he woke then it was mere seconds before they’d be back. Skidding around the platform, he instantly opened up the freezer and stepped inside, wincing at the ice on the floor. His feet screamed at him, and he internally cursed at himself. It was his stupid idea to not wear shoes just to prove a petty point to the infuriatingly stubborn professor. Dragging more fish than he could carry, Haruka stumbled out with about three in his arms, then smirked knowing he’d make another trip.

Tossing them into the water, he heard a couple satisfying splashes as the sharks raised their arms to them, dragging the meal down into the murky water with them. Just as expected, the orange-haired shark, Seijurrou, was reluctantly staying away from the food. Taking another cold step into the freezer, he grabbed out two sea-bass and chucked them in at him. He stared in shock for a moment before smiling sadly and taking them back down. Rin was the last to stay, holding one in his arms with a contemplative look. It was almost if he was waiting for Haruka to sit down, so the other did.

Dangling his frozen feet into the warmer water, he let out a sigh of relief. The freezer door was shut but the cold air still remained in the room, making the doctor shiver uncontrollably. He watched as Rin gladly dug his razorblade-like teeth into its flesh and tear a chunk off. It wasn’t the most elegant way he could’ve done it, but he was starving, so the human gave him that acknowledgment. Crimson eyes burned with hunger as he devoured the thing, bones and all. Scales stuck to his lips like silver raindrops on a rose, but his claws were as fierce as thorns. Flicking off pieces of inedible fins into the air, the shark sighed, relishing in the feeling. It was only until he was finished that he totally recognized that Haruka was watching him. Face reddening; the inhuman creature looked away with an embarrassed scowl, hoping the other didn’t find his little display too revolting.

“How long have you been watching?” He asked almost grumpily. Instead of moving away or making fun of him, the human just smiled, and that really caught the alpha’s attention. In all honesty that human’s smile was the most interesting, and rare, thing the shark had ever encountered. It made him wonder why he never did it, because, without making himself sound too corny, it was truly an attention grabber.

“As long as I’ve been here,” was his warm response, and he dug his hand into his lab-coat’s pocket. Dragging out a candy in a flashy wrapper, he began to unwrap it out of pure world-weariness when Rin swam up and stared at it with his curious scarlet eyes.

“I’ve seen wrappers like that before,” He started slowly, gazing at it intently. “What is it?”

Haruka unwrapped it and held the round orange ball in between his fingers with ease. With a soft smile, he held it out over the water for the shark to take it. There was a moment of hesitation, but Rin snatched it away just out of the sake of pure inquisitiveness. He rolled it around in his hand with an odd expression before looking back up at the doctor, who was opening one up for himself. This time it was grape.

“It’s called candy,” Haruka plopped it into his mouth with a straight face, then waited for the other. “You’re supposed to hold it on your tongue, it tastes good.”

With a suspicious look, the other opened his mouth and awkwardly placed it on his tongue. He stared straight ahead for a moment until the hard candy truly began to taste. Haruka knew when it met his unknowing taste-buds, because Rin’s eyes went wide with shock and he shivered a bit.

“What is this?” He gawked at the other in wholesome astonishment. The raven-haired doctor could do nothing but let his smile take over his face. Rin looked too precious, staring into space as would a young child. It was a whole new world to him, and nothing could make the other happier. Forgetting about Rei and Nagisa and everything going awry, the doctor felt nothing other than pure bliss as he handing the creature something completely new and alien to him. Laughing to himself, Haruka pointed to the scrawled Japanese on the label.

“Orange,”

***

A man sat frowning at the screen in front of him. An image flickered before him reflecting off the glass of some red frames, and it was not something he enjoyed looking at. Two creatures conversed, both extremely different in species, yet the same in language. They talked about nothing until the one more accessible to the food came and helped out the other one without a second thought. It wasn’t something he knew about before, and now he could feel anger coursing through his veins. His partner was going behind his back when he expressly told him not to. Slamming his fist down on the desk next to him, he scared his already-uneasy partner who was helping him on his espionage. The blonde cried out in shock and the man hissed, silencing him quickly.

“Do you see that?” He motioned to the screen. “I knew Nanase was going behind my back. Who knew he had such great relations with the sharks too.”

“Maybe he just felt bad about not feeding them?” The blonde responded pensively albeit hopefully. “You were being a bit unreasonable back there.”

There was a moment of tense silence. “I was just testing him. Knowing Haruka, he usually would just go along with the plan. But something’s different; something’s changed about that man. He’s in too deep of waters with the sharks. I think I’ll have to call for a termination soon.”

“You can’t do that can you?” The blonde asked, amber eyes flashing blue from the light of the flickering screen. In the background he heard a quiet laugh, and then turned to face it. The habitually stoic scientist was smiling and chuckling, staring at an unusual expression on the shark’s face. It was something rarely seen, and needed to be preserved, the blonde felt a dreading apprehension root in the pit of his stomach.

“I’ll try my hardest too.” The other smirked, then stared at the happy display on the screen. The dark room flickered with a quiet light, making it almost impossible to see around. All the blonde could witness was the lit expression on his partner’s face. “We’ll give him to this break, after that he’s out of here. If the government won’t help me get rid of him, I’ll just do it myself.”

And with that he stood, leaving the other to take care of the recording of the two enjoying each other’s presence. He frowned, remembering the time when he too was like that. It was fun being the professor’s assistant, but lately he had begun to slip. The stress of the job made him lose who he truly was. He never used to be such a monster. It was just the unhealthy obsession with the sharks that made him so thirsty for more.

Nagisa sighed then flickered off the screen, amber eyes hard as stone. He needed to make Rei really remember who he truly was, and if that meant losing his test subjects and his senior partner; he’d gladly do it against all odds to bring him back. It was a long shot in the eyes of any witness, but there was more than Rei’s sanity he needed to look out for. For the safety of the sharks, who were more human than prize, and also… it was for Haruka’s rare happiness.


	18. Day 17: The Assistant

To Haruka, it was a usually blasé evening. He wandered around the lab taking in all he could before the weekend break they were scheduled starting only the next day. Passing by Rei a couple of times, it was only the third time before he stopped and stared at what the other was doing. He was already packing up his papers with a startling speed. It was unlike him, for Prof. Ryugazaki stayed up until the last moment of the day until he packed up for the night. Some days he wouldn’t even sleep. With his usual precision and grace, the professor tossed all his belongings into a briefcase on the table and snapped it shut. Haruka’s eyes narrowed suspiciously, but some earnest thought in the back of his mind told him just maybe he was tired and needed a break just like the rest of them. He watched through cold azure eyes as the other stood and stretched, not even noticing he was being watched from across the room. There was a look of mock contentment in his eyes as he gazed straight ahead, staring down his unusually skittish assistant. Nagisa stared back at him with the look an animal would give its predator, eyes wide open and mouth down in an unsure frown. They locked their eyes for only seconds before the blonde moved away, rearranging books pointlessly on the shelves. Maybe he needed something to do too.

Deciding there was no use at just staring at the back of Rei’s head, Haruka moved up beside him, watching the blonde skip around with an anxious look in his usually blissful eyes. Ryugazaki readjusted his scarlet glasses, after detected the other’s presence, and turned to face him with a smile.

“I think I’m going to go,” He said with a sigh, looking back around the room once more. “I have a conference with some other entomologists who’ve been pretty neglected of my presence lately. Sorry it’s so early but…”

His eyes skirted over towards Nagisa and a frown made itself present on his face. He seemed to be thinking pretty deeply about something, and that made Haruka uneasy. His eyes narrowed to slits, and he tightened his usual straight face. Something wasn’t right about the other anymore.

“It’s alright,” He said shortly, voice hard, “wouldn’t want you to miss your meeting.”

Rei looked back with a slight frown, eyes scanning the others behind the glare on his glasses. They both stared at each other quickly until Nagisa tripped over a pile of books he had been vacantly assorting, snapping them both out of their tense haze. The fake smile was back on Rei’s face.

“Okay then,” he grinned, standing up. “I’ll take my leave them. See you next week, Dr. Nanase.”

Haruka nodded and then waited for the other to leave. He exited quickly, the sound of his polished heels slacking on the tile floor as the door opened to the outside, and swallowed him whole. Letting out the breath he was holding, the raven-haired male sighed and turned to the blonde, who was quickly shoving books back into various slots. It seemed, now, that he didn’t care all too much about sorting them. Maybe he just wanted to look good in front of the professor, that guy was a neat freak after all. Yawning quietly, he turned around to head towards the door. It was his last time feeding them until Monday, but he was told somebody else would come in and do it for him. He didn’t know how that made him feel. Actually he did: it made him sick to his stomach. After Rei, he didn’t want anybody else near the sharks.

Mutely heading up the stairs, he went through his usual routine: dragging a couple arm loads of fish out and tossing them into the surf, then waiting for the sharks to arrive. Sitting down and dangling his bare feet in the water, Haruka watched as four menacing fins broke through the surface. They circled the floating prey for seconds before the first head showed itself. Gou’s crimson hair made its appearance, then Nitori, then Seijurrou. They didn’t take the fish as they arrived, but settled with eating around Haruka’s presence. They had truly come a long ways since their first encounter with each other. Looking around for Rin, the doctor was almost concerned until he felt something tickle his feet.

Letting out an unstoppable snort, Haruka leaned down to dangle his head over the water to watch Rin circle beneath his feet. The shark quickly rose to the surface, pecking his lips quickly before diving back. Haruka smiled, tasting the salt on his skin as the alpha came up to stare at him. There was no sort of tension running through the air now. The shiver ate with the human without any problems. They acted as if he were some sort of family, even if saying that was a stretch.

Rin leaped out of the water quickly, startling the human as he landed with a smooth glide on the platform. Haruka stared at him incredulously as the shark settled himself back up next to him, sitting exactly as he was, with his tail dangling in the water. He leaned back on his arms, smooth and muscular from years of swimming. His body was leaner than the doctor had expected, but the muscles were all there. It was quite odd, the fact that his upper half looked thoroughly human; aside from all the battle scars. It was quite something, and as he settled himself in the tag on his ear dangled like an earring. That was the only thing out of place. He held a chunk of tuna in his hands, and began picking it apart as if he were a particular eater. Apparently he was, because as soon as his sister noticed him, she snorted.

“You should eat what you’re given, Rin.” She hissed at him with a weary face. “We’re not at home.” Nitori looked up from beside her and giggled as they all watched the shark tear apart his food. He looked up from what he was doing and scowled.

“Nobody asked you,” he retorted, jamming the portion into his mouth and chewing without another word. Haruka found it particularly amusing, and began chuckling to himself. The redheaded alpha turned to look at him with a frown, apparently not happy with the other’s response.

“What?” He hissed, eyes narrowing.

“Nothing,” Haruka put his fist over his mouth, then turned around when he heard the door unlatch behind him. All of the sharks went quiet, the laughter drained from the room. Rin sat rigid, spine straight as he turned to face what was behind them. His pupils narrowed to feral slits, and he almost snarled. The door opened slowly, and suddenly the outline of a human was in the shadow of the doorway. Out of context, it would have looked as if it was a threat, and it might have been. As soon as the person stepped into the light, Rin’s sleek scarred arm went up behind Haruka’s back and his claws glistened to dangerous points. The room was still with tension as the human made himself shown.

It was Nagsia.

“Nagisa, what are you doing?” Haruka felt his shoulders drop from relief, but Rin didn’t look any more satisfied. He didn’t trust anybody, and the one he did trust was being guarded as if he were treasure. The blonde stared into his feral eyes with uncertainty, and he swallowed out of fear. Suddenly he looked like he couldn’t hold anything in anymore, and he opened his mouth, shouting across the platform from the doorway.

“Rei’s planning to get rid of you!” He slapped his hand over his mouth, looking as startled as the doctor was. Haruka stared at him for a moment, eyes wide with surprise. He opened his mouth to speak, brain wheeling with the new information.

“What?” It wasn’t him who hissed the first word, it was Rin.


	19. Day 18: The Beginning of the End

“What do you mean?” Haruka’s voice was strained thin as his eyes scanned Nagisa’s thoroughly, looking for any signs of deceit. The blonde swallowed and peered around cautiously, making sure to avoid eye-contact with the sharks, then relayed the entire story over about how Rei had been watching him. He told the doctor of how he had been recorded over tiny hidden cameras everywhere, how he had been agitated with all the time spent with the sharks lately, and then he told him of the worst part: the part about Ryugazaki’s plan to get rid of him.

“You have until Monday.” Nagisa finished with a huff, and then looked down, eyes watering. The poor assistant looked bedraggled, as if he hadn’t gotten any decent shuteye in weeks. He was fidgety, twitching as if he had committed a crime. Amber eyes skirted everywhere but at Haruka, and he hid back in the shadow of the door.

Haruka didn’t know what to say. For the most part he was shocked, finally understanding why Rei had been so tense for the past week. He wracked his brain for every memory of the professor’s demeanor, and it was true; he got colder every day. But to get rid of him? It seemed absurd, even for Ryugazaki’s standards. At first it seemed as if the man couldn’t hurt a fly, but apparently he was much colder than that. Haruka’s gut feeling was right, there was a reason to be apprehensive, and now the dread came fully alive. Before he knew it his heart was beating faster than his breaths, and panic kicked in. Azure eyes went dull on the outside, and he rested his face in an open palm. His plans were cut short on time; it was a match between either saving them now or never to be able to help them again.

Rin’s stiffened back relaxed for a bit, but it was mostly out of fatigue. He had a traumatized look on his face, and the three others in the water behind him stared quietly. They all seemed to wait for what he had to say. Both Nagisa and Haruka knew they’d have to leave soon. It was against orders to stay in the lab past two. They had little time before the government officials came in and kicked them out. There was a moment of unadulterated silence and then Haruka broke it by digging into his pocket. Taking out his cellphone, he instantly dialed a number, not waiting for the other end of the line to pick up. If the others couldn’t do anything to save themselves, he would have to do it himself. He waited once, then twice, then three times before his heart started thumping loudly in his chest, and then it picked up.

“… Hello?” Was the familiar voice on the other line. Makoto. Haruka let out a long breath then instantly froze, he had been told by the other not to let his heart get in the way. What was he going to say? There would be disappointment involved, but he’d just have to take it and move forward.

“Makoto,” He started and there was a chuckle on the other end.

“I thought you had hung up.” He laughed and when he was answered with silence, his voice grew hard. “What is it Haru?”

The doctor’s gaze quickly met Rin’s and they stared in silence, the shark looking lost as he gazed at the thing in the human’s hand. Haruka’s lips drew up into a wry smirk and he exhaled sharply.

“Ryugazaki’s planning on getting rid of me.” He huffed, leaning back on his free hand. He heard Makoto’s end grow silent, the tension almost emitting from the phone.

“Should I bother asking why?” The phone responded quietly. Rin looked at Haruka with a contemplative expression, eyes curious as to how he’d respond. The mobile was loud enough for everyone to hear the conversation, even Nagisa who’d come in and lock the door behind him. They all waited for the doctor’s response with baited breath, even though everyone knew the answer.

“He thinks we’ve grown too close.” Haruka smirked.

Makoto only sighed. “I told you what would happen if you did.”

“I have until Monday.” He ignored the other’s chastisement, eyes growing dark. “I need your help.”

“… What is it that you need my help for?” Makoto sounded apprehensive, his voice wavering from upset to concerned. “What are you planning on doing Haruka?”

There was a tough silence, the doctor unsure how to answer his question. Should he be straight out and tell him that they’re breaking out, or should he just be vague. No, Makoto knew him too well to fall into one of his lies. There was one solution, and it was the true one.

“I need two getaway cars, preferably moving trucks, like a U-Haul or something inconspicuous like that. They both need to look entirely different. I need them by tomorrow at eleven pm sharp.” His voice was cold and commanding. He had no patience for any response that wasn’t in his favor. Makoto had never not backed him up before, and he’d be damned if he was refused help now in their darkest hours. The silence in the phone was almost maddening. The six in the room were as quiet and wary as cornered prey, everything longer than it needed to be.

“Where do they need to be?” Makoto’s voice resounded through the mobile loud and clear. Haruka felt himself laugh out of pure relief, and the sharks exhaled, each looking at another with hopeful smiles. Rin sat there next to him with his eyes closed, relishing in the thought of being home.

“You need to be by the loading ports behind the building, and the other car halfway to the piers under the highway. Make sure to be out of sight.” Haruka’s strategy instantly raced through his head. He was respectable at these forms of ideas, being the keenest out of his class was a gift and a curse; this experience being classified as both.

“You’re paying for them later.” Makoto chuckled, and then his tone grew solemn. “Don’t screw up Haruka.”

“… Promise,” Haruka whispered into the phone, and then the other line went dead. Resting his phone back into his pocket, he stood. There were no words other than his plan going through his head. The proposal was risky and impossible, but he knew he could do it.

Frowning deeply, he sauntered past Nagisa and unlocked the door to the icebox. The short blonde assistant stumbled back towards the creatures. They all whispered to each other inaudibly as their alpha kept his bloody eyes locked on the human’s back. He didn’t know what he could think. It was an all or nothing plan. Smirking to himself, he let his thoughts wander. Haruka was just like him in a lot of ways, both of them insane in their own unique concepts. It was like they were designed from the same person, only in two different species. One was cold blooded and the other hot tempered, but down to the bone they were as difficult to deal with and as judgmentally improvised. No wonder he felt so strongly about him. The man sure knew when to rise up to the task. It was something Rin couldn’t do in a million years. If he was the one on the other spectrum of mobility, he would have sat there confused and conflicted. No wonder he was a terrible prince, he needed someone like Haruka to make all the tough decisions.

During his haze the doctor had ordered Hazuki to help him clear all the movable fish out of the icebox and into the water. He didn’t care how much the sharks ate, but they had to be healthy. Haruka had seen what a strong shark could accomplish on land. They could even drag themselves up a flight of cement stairs if necessary to their survival. Smirking to himself, he trudged past the crimson-haired predator and shoveled the rest of the food into the surf below. Snapping out of his thoughts, Rin looked around to see the others staring alertly at the fish. He turned his head up to face Haruka, who was going back for another load. There was more food than he ever could have imagined, and it was still coming. Scarlet eyes dark with ambition, the alpha of the sharks clenched his fists then grinned.

“Alright, if we’re going to survive we need to be strong.” His voice didn’t waver in the least. “Eat everything you can then get as much rest as you need.”

“Yes sir!” Nitori saluted then dove into the water with pristine agility. Gou smiled proudly at her brother then turned back to follow a tuna floating away, tapping Seijurrou on the shoulder.

“You’re going to need to eat if you want to help us.” She reprimanded him shortly. He grinned then rubbed the back of his head with waywardly embarrassment.

“Alright.”

Rin watched with a blossoming sense of leadership as sharp teeth dug into frozen flesh. They didn’t wait for anything to thaw; nothing would be wasted on that night. He almost forgot to eat himself when Haruka fell back beside him, an exhausted, yet completed look in his glowing cerulean eyes. He inhaled slowly, his chest aching for a deep breath. The prince’s eyes went half-lidded, and he felt something weigh in his chest. He pondered what it was like to be human, to have all the power in the world, and yet be so incapable. They were truly defenseless creatures, immobilized by their own egotistical sovereigns. What felt like control was nothing mere of an illusion. They couldn’t even see what was right before them, dangling just out of reach. Nothing more than fame and virtue, wrapped tightly within a ticking time-bomb. That was like an iron beam on his shoulders. He grew weary as well.

“Haru,” He looked down at the water below him, where his ashen tail drifted with the unsettled wake. The human’s vacant eyes flickered over to his slowly, and then Rin truly saw what it was like to be human.

“Lay down.” He commanded gently, looking down at his lap. The human’s ocean eyes shone with momentary recognition, and then he obeyed without any difficulties.

Resting his head on the shark’s lap, he shifted into a comfortable position on his back, and closed his eyes quickly. The alpha’s tail moved slightly beneath him, like a wall of pure muscle. He could feel every strand twitch beneath him as he swayed the tips of his fins under the water. It was an unusual feeling, but oddly, comforting. He felt his shoulders begin to loosen up as Rin stared down at him, beginning to dread what tomorrow night would bring. If it left him forever wondering what his life would’ve been like with Haruka he wouldn’t know how to react. Would he come back every night, in search of the human, risking being captured again? Or would he leave without another word, forgetting everything about his time there? His heart stopped in his chest, and he felt his physique ache. What if he’d never see the good doctor ever again?

“Rin.” A crackling voice snapped him out of his demons and he looked down at the fatigued face under him. The human’s half-lidded eyes were an unnatural blue that reminded him of the ocean’s morning hue, and thick onyx eyelashes drew over them slowly. Haruka’s pale face was full of memories that lasted longer and bore more weight than any of the scars littering his own body. He had never looked at him up so close before, and upon inspection, he found the human’s face hard to look away from. It was like he was the embodiment of the world the prince was away from. He reminded him of home.

Drawing his hand gently over the side of his face, he felt his supersensitive claws brush hair out of his eyes. “What?”

His skin was warmer than the latest August tide, and it made the prince shiver. There was an appearance of distant anguish in the other’s sapphire eyes that she shark didn’t catch at first, and it seemed to grow more worried as the doctor relished in the feeling of Rin’s cold fingers on his skin.

“You should eat something too.” He murmured, beginning to subconsciously slip away into the realms of sleep. Eyes slipped closed almost immediately after and Rin felt warm tears dew at his own eyelashes. He felt a small inaudible sob wrack his body, and then he smirked, voice cracking.

“Okay.”


	20. Day 19: The AWOL

Tiny beams of light from passing cars drifted in through the blinds and danced around a darkened room. There was a rustling of sheets as a lone person shifted his weight, staring up at the ceiling. All was quiet except the lone humming of the washing machine in the other room and the sound of vehicles below. Cerulean eyes caught the light of the blinds as they turned towards it. The large window facing out of the apartment into the city below was glowing with the night life. Everything seemed to move at a fast pace, blurring from the stop and go of reality. There were millions of people in this city, and not one of them knew the same agony. They knew agony, but it was superficial and ordinary. No one knew it like the man did. Sitting up, he leaned his bare back against the wooden headboard, feeling its cold touch behind him. Slowly, and silently, he rolled one of his shoulders, and then the other, feeling the painful strain of his tense muscle. Another beam of light entered in from the outside, and he stood from his bed. Feet feeling around in the darkness, he passed by his black nightstand and walked up to the window, then slowly, and silently, opened the curtains.

Light pooled in from the outside, making the whole room glow in tones of grey and black. Shadows slunk around every corner, and from the twentieth story of the building, the doctor could see the whole city. The source of the light came from the parking place in the skyscraper across from him. People were constantly moving in and out of there to far below where night-owls flourished. It wasn’t even their prime time to thrive yet, and the whole place seemed to be crawling with empty faces. They weren’t empty of emotion, no; they were just void of thought. Everyone was so ignorant of the world they lived in. The night-haired male didn’t understand why, but he had a good idea. Nobody wanted to live in reality. It was something disastrously unheard of. They all wanted to live in their artificial world.

Haruka wondered if he lived in a false world.

Suddenly there was a loud ringing from behind him, and his telephone dock lit up green. Turning to the source of the noise he walked over slowly, emptily. Staring at the phone, he picked up from its port and held it to his ear, the noise stopping. There was a female’s voice on the other end of the line.

“… This is the registered alarm for room 215, Dr. Haruka Nanase, 10:00 pm, if you’d like to set another alarm for a different time please call the front desk at the registered number below, thank you.”

The other end of the line went dead and Haruka placed the phone back in its slot. He stood there for a moment, listening to himself breathe, staring at the unruly bed he had left. If only he had slept through that call nineteen days ago, if only he had turned down that offer. What would have happened to them?

Without turning the light on, Haruka disappeared into his closet to dig out some dark clothes. Whatever item looked dark in the lowlight of his room had to look dark to the outside world; that was his idea at least. He successfully dragged out a black turtleneck, and a pair of dark slacks. He put them on quickly, not wanting to waste any time. His briefcase laid stacked with stolen files on top his bed, and he was sure to hand them to Rin when he was released. The doctor didn’t want anyone to know about what was found not so long ago. Rushing over, he swiftly picked it up and set it down at the door. Next came his lab coat, crisp and cleanly official. Slipping it on, he laced up his shoes, and unlocked the door, briefcase in hand. Before he opened the door the phone in his pocket vibrated.

Unlocking it, he read the text: ‘Got both the trucks, one’s under the highway and the other parked at the abandoned lot next to the laboratory. Paid with cash to a pretty shady dude, I hope you got money to spare. Good luck…’

A short smirk disappeared off the doctor’s face, and he stood up straight. Shoving his phone back into his pocket, he opened the door.

***

For some reason, the building looked bigger than it ever had before. All the tinted glass windows on the front gave a pretty menacing look to it. Cars were parked haphazardly around the parking lot; Haruka spotted the moving truck out of the corner of his eye. He clutched onto the briefcase for dear life, then swallowed the fear down his throat and began to walk forward. He watched through stoic eyes as a helicopter came in for a landing on the roof, it wasn’t unusual, but it was seemingly terrifying. What could it have delivered? Heels clicking on the asphalt, a shadowy figure made its way over and began to trail beside him. Blonde hair stuck out from the hood of a raincoat, and in his arms he clutched meaningless books. Everything had to be for show this night.

“Are you ready?” Haruka said quietly, staring straight ahead. Nagisa nodded uncharacteristically, and then stopped shortly, letting the doctor enter first.

The doors slid open with a buzz and Haruka felt his pupils contract as the bright fluorescent light of the building washed everything out. He was almost nauseated as he walked abruptly towards the front desk. Five obtrusive metal detectors lay obstacles in front of him, ones he had always passed before. Two men at the front desk stopped their conversation as he walked towards them and into the detectors. Stopping, he waited for them to scan him, and then a slot opened up for him to stick his ID. Following the instructions without a word, he slid his ID in and waited for it to verify him. The machine beeped acceptingly and the gate opened up before him. That’s when he passed the front desk.

“Doctor?” One of the men asked, leaning towards him on his chair. “Aren’t you supposed to be on break until Monday?”

Before Haruka could react, Nagisa burst through the door panting harshly. He raced towards the detectors then slid his ID in, impatiently hopping as he dropped a couple books. The display was enough to catch the attentions of the others, and they stared at him in shock. Nagisa called to the expecting doctor with a frantic look in his eyes. The boy should have been an actor.

“Dr. Nanase! Please wait!” He picked up a couple stray papers from the floor and stretched his arm out towards Haruka. “You have to stay with me!”

The machine spat out his ID the next second, beeping positively then letting him through. Nagisa stumbled over stacking the books and papers back up in his arms as he made his way towards the others. Looking at the two attendants with an apologetic look in his amber eyes, he smiled childishly and waved.

“Sorry, sorry, Dr. Nanase’s only coming with me because I asked. I’m the attendant supposed to be here today and I don’t know how to use some equipment!” He grinned and the others shrugged, going back to their conversation as if nothing had happened. Haruka smirked at the extensive senselessness of the two government employees. They walked further into the building, and down a couple flights of stairs before they both had any courage to talk to each other.

“You were a great actor.” The doctor noted as the blonde followed behind, irately shifting the books in his arms. He only smiled as they walked, and waited for Haruka to open the door to the lab before them.

There was a moment of silence as the raven-haired male punched in the code to the door and entered. The room was eerily still, still resting how they had left it the night before. Nothing was changed, and even the tank was dark. The door slid shut behind them as it usually did, leaving them in the dark. Nagisa hurried off the platform and down the stairs as he flickered on some lights, leaving Haruka to play with the door’s system. He opened a screen to lead him to a new password, and then scanned his thumbprint as it accepted the new code. Now only he could get into the room if needed. Smiling proudly to himself, he followed Nagisa into the dimly lit room and headed around the tank to the door that led up the stairs. Using his phone as a light, Haruka rushed up them quickly and opened the door with a silent creak.

The inside of the tank was dark, and as Haruka headed to the edge of the platform, the water began to move. His eyes opened to the darkness, and instantly he saw the black below him glow teal. Splashing echoed from the edges of the enclosure as waves rocked the glass. Puffs of vapor spouted into the dry air quietly, sounding like whales coming up for a breath. A silent hissing began to get louder, as the beasts surfaced. Slick tails slid in and out of the water, and semi-lit bodies made themselves shown. Four sets of faintly glowing eyes stared at him silently, determinedly, each one embodied with the appearance of a predator. Fangs drenched with illuminating saliva peaked out from behind salty lips, pointed and ready for the kill. Claws scraped against the platform, sharpened just for that moment. The monsters hissed and let out short bursts of excess water-vapor from their closing gills. The surf below them churned with powerful thrusts of their sleek tails, strong from the food they had devoured all of. The four of them felt more alive than they did the first day of their capture, their blood boiling with excitement, their mouths drawing up into fearsome snarls. The sharks impatiently shifted in the water, waiting as the doctor turned the lights on.

Their bodies came to life with every bulb flickering on, and the well-fed creatures’ pupils contracted into cat-like slits. They stared intently at the human, their alpha’s arms already on the platform, claws digging deep gashes into the surface. Haruka felt his body stiffen; these creatures were truly animals given the circumstances. If only the mad professor could see them now: strong, well-fed, excited, and willing. He felt a smile break through the stoic surface of his face. Letting in a deep breath, he spoke.

“It’s time.”

The leader of the sharks grinned maliciously, and then yanked himself out of the water. He laughed as he hauled his lean figure across the new surface, finally being free of his cage. The rest shadowed as he did, cackling as they escaped the surf. Their claws shrieked against the surface of the platform, but they didn’t stop there. Before they knew it they were heading down the stairs, Haruka trailing in pursuit. Awkwardly making it to the bottom, they looked around at the new world.

“What do we do now?” Rin asked in contempt as Haruka made his way up to him. The doctor stopped then looked down at the disdained animal. The smile never left his face; he hurled his lab coat on the ground then jammed the bent ID in his dark pocket, eyes narrowed in determination.

“We escape.”


	21. Day 20: The Trustworthy

“Let’s hurry and get out of here,” Nagisa was the first to break the silence as the sharks peered around the cold and unforgiving human world. It wasn’t their first time out in the open fully awake, and it wouldn’t be their last. Loud inhales echoed throughout the room as the four sharks slid inelegantly towards the blonde, watching as he slipped his hood over his head. Shrouded in all black, the kid looked like nothing mere of a shadow. With a slow movement, his pale hand then pulled something unrecognizable out of his noisy pocket; an oddly shaped key. It was small and silver and cut into a square-shaped pattern along the teeth. Amber eyes narrowing as he looked at it, Nagisa let out a long breath, something uncharacteristic of him.

“I’m only supposed to use this key in times of emergencies, and the back exit will be crawling with sensors and cameras.” He looked to the doctor and recited the ingenious plan. “The only thing we can do is go to the control panel in the corner of the room and shut off the lab’s main power. Now that’ll alert the guards outside, and since you changed the passcode we’ll have about ten to fifteen minutes to make a break for it. There are two spiraling staircases down and one main ramp. Since the sharks don’t have feet we’ll have to use the ramp and make it quick.”

Gou looked speculative, staying close beside Seijurrou, but her determination didn’t falter. The creatures stirred impatiently, waiting for Makoto’s text to fall through and they start their plot in full swing. Haruka strutted over to the power-controls and unlocked the case with a scan of his fingers. It popped open with a successful beep then he dragged open each of the panels. They were hard to determine through their size and color, but the doctor had crammed ever bit of knowledge on them in the past few days before the break. He knew which ones shut off what, and he knew which one was the central electrical shutoff. That would be the first and only one to go. Impassive blue eyes scanned the flashing buttons, and then the mobile in his pocket flashed. He tugged it out and read the text:

Parked outside the back exit, the back’s unlocked and slightly open, hurry.

Haruka’s eyes made contact with everyone’s before he turned and unlatched the glass safety. He heard somebody inhale behind him and Nagisa’s key slide into the door’s lock. The sharks flocked around the back door, arms tense and back hunched, ready to spring. The room glowed dimly with an ominous light, one forsaking enough to have him on edge. With a deep breath, Haruka whispered.

“Five, four, three,” He heard Nagisa’s jacket swish with the movement of his arms. “two… one.”

Slamming his thumb down on the button, he heard felt the scanner trace his thumb print then beep, obliging to his actions. The whole room went dark with a sickening flash, and there was a loud scream outside in the hallway. As soon as the power shut down Nagisa had the door open and was racing behind the sharks, so quick in their actions. Heart speeding up in his chest, Haruka skidded away from the machine like a startled deer, feeling around as he dashed towards the exit sign, still green on battery power. The room was pitch-black with the exception of the light and he found himself leaping over a railing as he raced towards the door. Nothing had ever been so exhilarating before, and he wasn’t sure whether he liked it. As soon as he made it to the door he heard a thud on the main entrance and his heat punched right through his chest. They only had ten minutes before that door would be pried open, only ten minutes to flee.

He dashed onto the ramp as he watched the shadowy silhouettes of the sharks slide down with the appearance of penguins. The walls were lined with pipes and tubes, emitting loud watery creaks as they spewed hot vapor into the air. It seemed as if the building’s systems didn’t respond well with no power.

Skidding to a halt at the end of the ramp, he was blinded by red lights of a truck as Nagisa hauled the door open. The world sounded so loud from the outside, people calling across from the parking lot as the black building swarmed. It was almost too unreal to be true, and he only snapped back into reality when Rin couldn’t make it into the back. He hissed in an irate panic as Haruka rushed up and heaved him in, his arms aching from the shark’s muscle-weight. The alpha’s leathery skin was cold and blanketed with bumps from the winter air’s chill, freezing from the outside air. He inhaled sharply as he hit the frozen metal of the inside, staring back at the human in an animalistic shock. Shoes squeaking on wet asphalt, he and Nagisa loaded in the rest, straining as they assisted Seijuurou in. Turning back to the building, Haruka slammed the door shut, jamming a couple loose rocks and pipes under it. Now, even if they wanted to, they couldn’t get out the back door after them. He listened as Nagisa sprinted up the passenger seat of the truck, hissing quietly.

“Turn all the lights off, do you want to get caught?” He made it back quickly as the onyx-haired doctor dove into the back after them. The red lights went off with a click as the dependable blonde assistant of the mad professor grabbed the bottom of the door, lowering it in front of him. Shutting it completely, he locked it without another word and soared back into the passenger’s seat, mouthing at Makoto to hit the gas. Obliging without another word, his foot went down, and the truck reared to life, speeding into the road as obscure as the night around it.

In the blackness he had once dreaded, Haruka felt himself get thrown into the wall parallel from him. His lungs burst as he made contact, hearing himself shriek something pitiful. Gasping for breath as the vehicle thundered down the road, he grasped at his chest, all wind knocked out of him. Suddenly a cold hand made contact with his back and he coughed, feeling it drag him towards its body. Claws gripped at the dark fabric as he pushed himself on his arms, making his way to the lap waiting for him. Already injured before any of the fun happened, he chastised himself as he rested his head on a lukewarm tail. Listening to the faint heartbeat below, there was a familiar feel to the hands gripping tightly to his chest. His blurry eyes caught a cobalt glow, and he grinned weakly.

Catching his breath, Haruka forced himself to sit upright, leaning onto Rin’s chest as he coughed painfully. The sharks around him glowed with a pale yellow light, contrasting to their alpha’s flashy display. It was the color of extreme fear and apprehension, the good doctor hoped to never see it again. He felt the redhead’s arm snake under his and prop him up, making sure he couldn’t go flying again. Almost unfeeling the sting of claws digging into his side, Haruka felt oddly tranquil. Rin’s heartbeat was steady and strong, pumping so much blood and adrenaline through his veins we was beginning to warm. But just as they felt at ease, a loud wail rose up from the outside behind him. There was a scratchy noise on the radio in his pocket, and Nagisa’s voice sprang up quickly.

“… Shit… We have a problem.”

Weakly fighting in his pocket for the little machine, Haruka dragged himself up closer to Rin and pressed the button. His breathing was raspy at best, and he felt a horrid pain in his chest as he coughed into the microphone.

“How many?”

Nagisa’s line opened up again. “At least three.”

Rin looked down from his vacant expression and gripped onto Haruka more tightly. He had a quizzical look in his dim cobalt eyes as he gazed down worriedly.

“Three what?” His voice was a mixture of desolation and frustration. His illuminating eyes narrowed threateningly as he looked at the others. It was almost excruciating to look up at, or even to listen to. The doctor coughed and a crackling in his lungs made his eyes water. 

“Authorities,” He looked away, dropping the machine as it skidded across the floor and into the corner of the truck. He could hear the sirens wailing behind them, and the shark’s eerie glow faded to a sickly cream. They looked around in shock, seeming to truly know of what that word meant. Rin gazed down angrily, using his other arm to quickly adjust the doctor, holding him against his chest, head buried in the fabric of his turtleneck. Warm breathing on his shoulder sent shivers down his spine, but he couldn’t think about that now. He wrapped his arms tightly around the shark in return, saying nothing.

The truck screeched and skidded as the stowaways tumbled around, claws shrieking against the steel walls as they all struggled to stay upright. The sirens were deafening, seeming to multiply by the second. Haruka constricted his hold around the shark as they turned yet another corner, suddenly surrounded by the noise of thousands of cars and the rumbling base of risen highways. Rin whimpered slightly into the doctor’s shoulder as the truck skidded to an unpredicted halt and the back door flew open.

“Hurry, the helicopter!” Was all Makoto shrieked as he yanked at Gou and Seijurrou, shoving them into the same-level truck waiting just beyond theirs.

He stood at the back ushering them into a darker moving truck under a pillar hidden beneath the high-rise. He grabbed Nitori by the arm and helped him into the other vehicle, almost throwing him as Haruka and Rin followed quickly, sliding into the back barely in time as Makoto slammed the door behind him. It shut just in time to see Nagisa slam on the gas and shoot down the road, lights ablaze, catching any authoritative attention as he provided them a distraction. A helicopter flooding out the entire area roared overhead, catching the blonde’s getaway truck as he diverted into a road opposite of theirs.

“Nagisa!” Was all Haruka shouted before all went dark again and the truck droned to life, speeding in the other direction.


	22. Day 20 pt 2: The Scarlet Shark

Haruka leaned into Rin’s chest with a stunned expression. It was a humiliating look, but the other didn’t seem to care. The redhead had his surprisingly strong arms wrapped around the doctor in a tight embrace, staring straight ahead with the same perturbed scowl. He didn’t even look afraid anymore, but a sense of emotionally compromised wrath. In other words, he was pissed off. Bloody eyes narrowed into dangerous slits, Haruka felt his ear rumble with the snarl swirling inside the shark’s chest. His grip tensed up and the raven-haired male found himself unable to breathe properly. He didn’t know what to say, still at a loss for words himself—and more than usual too. The predator had a protective wrap around him, but it was something warm, and something safe. There was a quiet flush from the doctor when he realized he was almost fully on top of the other male, caught in a hold he could never dream himself breaking out of. Something in the purity of Nagisa’s will to save the sharks had all of them at a loss for words. They could tell Makoto was driving fast, but the truck was silent. No sound reverberated off the road or in the air, nothing but the rumbling of track on tires broke the quiet.

Gou leaned up against Seijuurou, eyes closed out of exhaustion. He draped an arm over her shoulder and leaned her head into his shoulders, humming a soothing melody quiet enough for only her to hear. Nitori was on the other side of Rin, gazing at the tip of his fins vacantly, twitching from a sudden sound of bump every now or then. He looked sleek and strong now, though. He wasn’t the same shark that Haruka had rescued not so long ago.

Rin was a different story from the rest; one with deeper meanings and more pages. He slumped against the wall, one arm now against the floor, claws drilled into the steel plating almost tighter than his grip on the doctor. His scarred face was dim in the slightly glowing truck, the eerie light casting off the shark’s gills and eyes enough to illuminate their silhouettes. His expression was a sort of twisted scowl, one somebody would think as a smirk, but Haruka knew better. His emotions meant pain, but his face felt like it was going to twist from some sort of sick humor. It looked like he was fighting off enough demons, ones that were pestering him enough to buy into that whole teenage-angst appearance. It was like dripping liquid copper onto a rose, watching the poor flower, so sharp and elegant and proud, be burnt away by one event in time. It wasn’t a slow burning too. It was just one quick hole right through the center, singeing the whole thing until it wilted away. Rin’s expression matched that of a burning rose.

Cerulean eyes matched his in the dark and they stared at each other for a long time. Something looked like it was bugging him, but he was too stubborn to let it free. Instead, he caged the lion and locked the door. Although, the doctor knew one thing to be certain in their world: all beasts, big and small, knew how to break free.

“Haru, I—”

“Don’t,” Haruka warned him lightly, his eyes resolved. “Don’t.”

Instead of smirking or shooting a rude comment back, Rin cupped his face with his free hand, bringing the doctor close enough that he could feel their lips almost touching in the chilling air. His eyes were shadows behind the hot sapphire glow, and he almost couldn’t bear another glance at the human. Swallowing the flood in his throat, the shark trembled, eyes dewed with salty tears.

“I wish,” Rin whispered with the subtlety of a saint, his lips moving so close to the others’; close enough to touch without meeting. He choked out the next half of his statement, fighting off threatening tears, “I wish you weren’t human.”

Haruka didn’t take that as offense at all. In his own heart—down to ever cell of is blood—he knew that he wanted to be like them too; to not have to face human society like he did so begrudgingly now. Feeling the shark’s warm breath on his skin, his heart pranced in his chest. Using the blind judgment he had always resorted to around the sharks, the doctor leaned his chest up against Rin’s and closed in the space between their lips.

He kissed him out of passion, out of regret, out of something he had never considered before. The shark didn’t even have time to make room for something as petty as shock. Arms twining around Haruka’s neck in an abrupt fashion, Rin pushed himself upwards into the human, tilting him back. They were as close as the water to the shore, with all the fire of two distant stars; each one threatening to burn out. Excitement surged through Rin’s veins, locking their lips so tightly that neither could breathe. He dragged his hands through Haruka’s soft onyx hair, tugging and pulling him nearer. There was no more space for him to move though, and the human lifted his arms from the floor, enveloping his arms around the shark so tightly that they were both at a loss for air. The taste of familiar salt on Rin’s dry lips made the doctor’s head spin and his eyes close tight. He could feel every indent of every scar as he traced over his lips gently, making sure to permanently remember how it felt to be so alive. They broke foe air for a mere second before intensity brought them back, the longing they both hid so well from themselves for the other surfacing like a buoy on the sea. In the chaotic entanglement Haruka could feel Rin’s sharp teeth bang against his, making him cringe, yet want more than he ever could have. Fate wouldn’t allow what they both truly desired. He put one last jolt of energy into it and then broke away, now witnessing the true damage of their uncertain relationship.

Tears streaked down Rin’s face down to his chin. Haruka marveled at the sight with a saddened frown. The tears, perfect and surreal, were glowing too. They danced down his dark face like falling stars on a crisp winter night, and then dropped onto the human’s bare wrists, tingling slightly before the color faded away. They rolled down like streaks of light then disappeared. Sobs wracking the other’s chest brought on more, and before he knew it Haruka had his head in the crook of the other’s neck, unable to stare any longer. Closing his eyes, the shark shuddered as his eyelashes batted bare skin. Rin’s agony was silent, dignified. If his internal body fluids didn’t glow so beautifully, the other sharks wouldn’t even have noticed.

Staying tight together for the rest of the time, Haruka feared the worst when the truck skidded to a halt, then inched forward. His body shook with fear and frostbite as the truck reversed and backed around a corner, running onto a different type of road. The thumps were what brought the other sharks out of their seemingly habitual hollowness, and they looked up one by one, shimmering eyes scanning the black apprehensively. There was a stutter in the movement, and then the engine cut off.

The sound of wet boots came closer until the back door of the truck was lifted, rolling into the roof as Makoto stood before them. He was silent, and Haruka only looked up from Rin’s skin when he felt the others tense.

The night was silent; the sky was of black hues and storm clouds an ashen grey. Rain pattered haphazardly around the hidden pier, relentlessly deafening Haruka with the echo. Everything was at peace, and beyond the close edge of the wharf spread the ocean far and wide, churning and roaring, waiting for its prince to return. Rin’s arms slackened around the human when they all took in the sight. There were no boats; all but the freighters sleeping on the distant horizon, and a long stretch of rock close to the area blocked them off from civilization. The dock was truly abandoned.

Pulling away, Haruka somehow found himself out of the truck beside the sullen Makoto. Azure eyes drifted out into the waves, imagining the churning world that waited beneath the surface. His breath came out like puffs of smoke and as heavy as the thought too. His heart shattered upon reflection, and there was a movement from the truck. Turning slightly, he watched in cold comatose as Nitori scrambled to the edge, shoving himself out of the vehicle with a graceful ease and landing in the freezing water with a loud splash. There wasn’t even a reaction as the doctor watched Seijuroou help Gou out after him, both slipping beneath the surface of the water. The last to go was Rin, who held himself up at the edge, staring down somberly. A stirring behind his eyes made him look so hopeful, but the outside expression convinced his desperation. He looked so unsure, and that almost made the human sick with guilt.

“Go,” Haruka intoned quietly, eyes dark and cold and hard. Apathy ran with his demons, but couldn’t win out against the strong emotion welling in his chest. Cold puffs of air escaped into the wind as he stood at the edge of the dock, the three sharks beginning to resurface with wide smiles and fading frowns. Gou even went up and kissed Seijuurou, making him flush cobalt and rub the back of his head in embarrassment. That all stopped when they saw Rin hesitating. 

He looked at Haruka anguished inside and out, scarlet eyes pleading. The human looked at him bitterly, guilt boiling over his head.

“Please, Rin.” He breathed, rain dripping down his face. It was beginning to come down harder with the oncoming clouds. How cliché, the back of his mind noted sullenly.

The alpha closed his eyes and hunched his shoulders back, his spine tensed and he let out a breath. Streaking past Haruka like a bullet, he leapt into the water before him, and the human only flinched when the water drenched the tips of his shoes. Deaf and blind from the chaos within him, Haruka felt his body give way. Falling to his knees on the sodden wood, he stared up at the shy, wondering how any of this could have happened to him. It was almost funny, how when as soon as he thought his life was on track it threw him over a ledge. Life worked in that way; it seemed to always be against its host. A windy silence filled the air, and a gust blew rain straight into his back. He smiled wretchedly. 

“Haru,” Rin’s voice cut through the wind like a knife. The doctor looked over the water to see the shark bobbing gracefully in the waves, his beautiful crimson hair flying in all directions as the breeze brought it to life. Now, in the water, his scars were purple, more prominent. Rin looked small against the ocean, and yet he was bright enough to be seen from miles. Glowing like a floodlight against the black, he was alive with color. It wasn’t the dim illumination that he had witnessed before, but a full environmental change. He was able to be seen from miles—that was how a shark was supposed to look. Gills and eyes beaming bright lights of cobalt swirling in teal, he gracefully swam up to the edge of the pier and looked up through passionate eyes. Everything always seemed so much more beautiful out of captivity.

Haruka was going to cry.

He leaned out over the edge to catch Rin in his arms one last time, burying his head into his wet neck as the shark embraced him vigorously. Water vapor puffed out of his gills with every breath, and the warmth surprised the doctor. Rin had risen in temperature too. He truly was alive once more.

“Haruka,” He rasped, pulling away slightly. “I can’t say it.”

“Then don’t.” The good doctor murmured, and dragged him in to kiss him fervently one last time. It seemed endless, but those fleeting seconds brought their wrath down as Haruka tasted the ocean more vividly than he ever had. It was warm and comforting and all around him. It was also very vengeful, full of fury and passion. It was trusting, it was angry, it was Rin.

“Don’t say goodbye.” Haruka whispered brokenly through the rain masking his tears. He gazed at the shark with the most emotion he could ever muster, and then felt his hands slipping away. Rin was beginning to descend back into the water. The shark had stars littering his face, glowing as they fell from his ruby eyes. He choked then rubbed his face, smiling softly. It was a cold reassurance. Haruka still felt dead inside.

“I have to.” The prince murmured and stopped as soon as his head was the only thing above water. He pulled his arm out to caress Haruka’s cheek, and then dropped it back. “Goodbye.”

The last word came out as a distressed choke, cracking as he turned and leapt into the water, tail sleek out behind him, and shot past the others. They followed in line, one after the other, until their dorsal fins disappeared from the surface and the illuminating glow from sight. As soon as he knew them they were gone.

Haruka sat there on his knees, staring out into the black for a long time. Nothing came to mind, he was hollow. He unconsciously wiped his lip where Rin’s used to be then looked at his fingers, wincing when a feint trace of cobalt glow rubbed off and onto his skin. Makoto walked up behind him, putting a hand on his shoulder. They stared at each other for an evanescent moment, and then he got the doctor to stand, and led him back into the passenger seat of the car. There was no life for Haruka there anymore, and the man was starting to shake from the cold. He turned on the heat and then looked over without a sound.

“It’s not over.” Haruka murmured to himself. That made the other frown.

“What?”

“It’s not over.” The doctor repeated vacantly, guiltily, prophetically.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> inspiration: Say Goodbye by Skillet


	23. Day 21: The Aftershock

To be honest, he felt like an idiot. A wreck. He was emotionally charged and that was highly unprofessional. It was sick and wrong and Haruka couldn’t even bring himself to be ashamed, because, in a sense, he was still beside himself with grief. The world was funny in that way. Nothing was on his mind more than the distressed scowl on Rin’s face the night before. Haruka had been recalling it all afternoon, after being unable to sleep through the night. No word had come back from Nagisa, and he was beginning to worry more than he should have. Idiot, the doctor’s mind screamed at him, if only you hadn’t gotten so invested in your work; if only you had listened to Makoto’s warnings. But it was too late by that point, and Haruka had found himself on that same beach. He strolled idly towards the sea wall, where evergreens sprouted from the top and the gray sky casted a shadow over the alcove like a blanket. The cliff-side was bare and rocky, occasionally tumbling away when a large wave struck it. That place was perfect for him to sit and think for a very long time.

His toes dipped and sunk into the ashen sand, and he stared ahead for quite some time. The air was still wet from the dribbling rain and even his windbreaker stuck to his body. It wasn’t even raining that hard and yet the doctor felt drowned. He sauntered for a while longer before stopping and looking down. The entire time he was there he had not once saw the ocean. All he witnessed were flash-backs of black and churning water so deafening; he saw red hair and illuminating eyes and a scowl lined with pointed teeth. He saw the fabled prince of the sea, he saw his love. And yet not once, had he ever told the shark he loved him.

Azure eyes widened in shock. He was never able to let Rin know.

A strangled cough got jammed in his ribs as he kicked a pebble ahead of him and padded on, feeling the sand move around him. Gray waves crashed just beyond him, so threatening and cold. He blinked, finally seeing them for what they really were, and then stopped when he noticed something gleam out of the corner of his eye. Walking over to it, the raven-haired male leaned down and narrowed his eyes slightly.

It was like a shiny ring, but broken and steel. A light on the inside blinked wildly, flashing blue then green in some indescribable pattern. The ring was so small and dilapidated he almost didn’t notice what it really was. He had definitely seen it before, because it was once of the very chips he had installed on the tails of the sharks so long ago. Heart beating faster in his chest, he dug his fingers into the sand to retrieve it. The chip was no bigger than a penny, and he felt grit under his nails as he struggled to wipe it off. Part of it, where it had been removed, was completely in disrepair. Haruka had to squint his eyes to look at the code and number inscribed on the plaque.

It said MS04.

The image of the small silver-haired shark instantly appeared in his head. A sad smile tugged on the doctor’s lips. He was glad they were all safe. He jammed the device into his pocket then looked around for the others. If the first chip was off, then the rest had to be around there somewhere. Feeling around in the san, his finger caught the splintered edge of another. MS02. It took him a while to locate the next two, but it was worth it. Seijurrou and Rin’s were almost right next to each other, jammed up against a rock in a near tide pool. Staring at Rin’s quietly for a long while, Haruka felt himself grow cold. It was if his body was tired of the emotional outbreaks. He snorted to himself bitterly.

His phone rang just before he made it to the base of the cliff. Stopping slightly, he went to check who was calling. The name came up and Haruka unlocked it, putting it to his ear.

“Makoto,” He intoned quietly.

“Haru we have a problem.” The phone responded quickly, raising an atmosphere of apprehension.

“What?” The doctor asked inquisitively. “Did you find Nagisa?”

“… No.” Makoto swallowed. “It’s bad though. The labs, they, they called Rei. It seems like somebody went in to check on the room to see if you guys were alright and when they realized… You can’t go home Haruka.”

He had expected that much. It was no surprise; he was already planning on escaping for a little while, just until he had recollected his shattered conscious. Silence waited for him on the other end of the call as he contemplated. Rei would be out and looking for him along with the rest of the knowing government. He was sure to pay for the kidnapping of the sharks. Hell would be raised the next time he faced the psychopathic professor.

“Makoto,” He responded again after the long silence. “Can I stay at your house tonight? Just until I get my stuff together?”

There was a sigh. “It can’t be helped. I just can’t stop thinking of Nagisa.”

That dropped like a dead weight in Haruka’s stomach. Neither of them knew where the blonde went, and he hadn’t contacted them like he said they would. Both had tried his cell, home phone, and even called all three of his sisters. Nobody knew where he was. It was like he had dropped from the face of the earth without a single person to witness it.

“I know.” Haruka murmured, and then hung up, dangling his phone at his side.

The day was coming to an end and he didn’t want to be alone in the dark just yet. With one last look to the water he began to make his way back up to the grass where his car was lying idle. Pockets tinkling with the sound of broken tracers, the doctor threw his coat off into the back seat. Rain pattered on the window steadily now, seeming to wash the vehicle in its silent embrace. And with every stereotypical rain scene came the dissatisfied smirk, and the running of his hands through his hair. Haruka had gone wrong in so many ways, and never before had he felt so utterly flawed. It wasn’t even that though; to find a word for what he was feeling was an impossible feat. There was not one, but many simultaneously laughing in his face. It was enough to make even a sane man go crazy. Anything was, even in under a month.

He was tired and exhausted, looking around shiftily. It wasn’t wise to be out in public the day after his mutiny, but he felt it was necessary. It was like visiting an old grave; rekindling the moment. Starting the car as the sky blackened, he backed out of his parking space and drove away.

Two eyes shimmered in the dark, watching silently as the human’s vehicle vanished. Taillights reflected off the tip of salt-washed copper and a creature readjusted a helmet atop his head, the symbol of a crowned shark standing out on the side. His submerged shoulders and chest were clad in armor and a dagger hung in its sheathe. His face was grim and old, blonde hair and wise eyes told his age. He waited until the lights were gone before returning back under the water, a silvery dorsal fin disappearing under the surf quickly and quietly.


	24. Day 23: The Waltz of Chess

The day was now Monday, and Haruka knew he couldn’t stay any longer at Makoto’s house. It didn’t seem right. He gazed around at the welcoming furniture with a sense of apprehension, not wanting to get up from his makeshift bed on the couch. He rolled over onto his side to face the pillows, gray light beginning to filter in through the blinds. Blankets slipped around his legs uncomfortably, but he was too tired to fix them. He had slept for almost thirteen hours, raven hair unruly and spiking up everywhere. Azure eyes were accompanied by dark rings, in which Makoto found the name ‘raccoon’ to be most fitting. They had talked when he had arrived and cooked a small dinner. There was really nothing to say though; Haruka did not want to tell him of the locator chips he found washed ashore. To be honest, he was even reluctant to talk at all, not wanting to stay awake and say things he knew he’d regret later. It was a tiring evening, and when the other finally let him go to bed he was out in an instant, only waking once to hear the phone ring.

Abruptly, a muted beeping echoed through the house, and he heard Makoto turn over in his bed down the hallway. There were cons to living in a small rambler by the water. One: you could always hear people move or talk, and two: the waves were so goddamn loud on the shore. It took him a minute to collect himself, eyes cracking open slightly as he listened to the owner of the house move around. His mind was internally sighing, knowing that as soon as Makoto was up he would have to be to. Haruka burrowed his face into his pillow and tried to fight off flashbacks of Rin’s warm shoulder, it was hard since the wound was so fresh to find himself not thinking of the incident. 

Makoto came into the living room almost fifteen minutes later, hair wet from his shower. He pulled a thick sweatshirt around him and ran quickly to the heater, turning it up.

“I hope you weren’t too cold.” He huffed as he sat in the loveseat adjacent from the doctor’s makeshift bed. There was a moment of silence as sapphire eyes stared out into a distant memory, then came back to stare at the host blankly.

“I’ve slept in worse conditions.” He deadpanned, leaning up on his elbow. His eyes were blank, but his expression said suspicious. “Who called last night?”

“Oh just my parents,” Makoto’s green eyes were tired. “It seems they want me to babysit.”

“Then I’ll get out of your way quickly,” Haruka sat, stretching his arms over his head. A yawn got caught in his throat, but he was too tired to let it out. Makoto looked unwilling as the doctor sat up and adjusted the gray sweater on his body. He sat in a quiet atmosphere as Haruka picked himself up from his slump and began to fold the blankets into neat squares.

“Makoto,” He intoned quietly as he was working, causing the other to look up. “Can you drive me to my building?”

“Of course.” He smiled sadly.

***

Haruka unlocked the door quickly, and rushed inside, looking around as his room remained dark and untouched. He pulled out a small suitcase from under his bed and opened it up. Inside was a picture of him and Makoto as kids, smiling and innocent. A bitter frown tugged on Haruka’s face and he began to fold random clothing items without a second thought. He was clean and efficient, taking only what he usually wore and placed them in neat rows. Before he knew it he was finished and slunk into the bathroom to gather other necessaries. His phone buzzed in his pocket.

Unlocking the screen, he saw that it was Makoto. Had he left something at his house or in his car? Clicking on the screen lightly, he opened the text.

Black vans parked just outside your building and you’ll never guess which crazy professor walked out of one. It seems they’re going up to chat with you a little. Be discreet, do whatever you can to avoid the blame Haruka.

A cold weight settled in his chest and he felt his heartbeat kick up a couple notches. Grabbing his toothbrush, he rushed into his bedroom and jammed it in a side pocket, zipping the bag up before hiding it back under his bed. He then smoothed out the ruffled comforter and tried to put an air of professional care to his gloomy room. He was kicking a couple shirts into his closet by the door when the knock almost caused him to leap out of his own skin.

Stalking over quietly, he put his eye to the hole in the door and peered out. Sure enough, Professor Ryugazaki was standing outside his door with his usual self-important expression. His white lab coat looked more official than he would have liked but the two black suited thugs behind him were what frightened him the most. Going against the government was a dangerous move, and Haruka had deliberately thrown his king into the water without a second thought. He sighed and watched as Rei prepared to knock again.

He opened the door before the professor’s fist hit it, smirking in satisfaction as he made eye contact with the other.

“What are you here for?” He asked listlessly. The professor let out an overdramatic sigh, prominent to his character, and crossed his arms to add to the tense atmosphere.

“I’m here to address a major conspiracy within the walls of our own laboratory.” He began a bit arrogantly, staring down at the doctor. “You know my assistant, Nagisa Hazuki?”

Haruka’s heart skipped a beat, but his eyes were stoic. “What about him?”

“Well,” Rei rubbed his hands together. “It seems he was arrested yesterday with a getaway truck. He told them that he was the one who released the sharks, as you must have heard.”

“What?” Haruka’s tone was pure honesty, not surprised about the sharks, but about Nagisa. Rei’s accusing expression faltered, and he began to look doubtful. He seemed to take it as the other not knowing anything about the recent events taking place.

“You mean you hadn’t gotten the call yet?” Rei asked in confusion. “The guards at the front desk informed me that you were with him the night of the incident.”

“I left soon after I unlocked the door.” Haruka lied, his stomach heaving with absolute guilt. Things were starting to heat up, and he wasn’t sure whether he could keep his front for so long with the news of Nagisa so fresh in his mind. I caused this, his mind kept screaming at him.

Ryugazaki shoved his scarlet glasses up on his face, looking more muddled than ever. When he had arrived he had looked so sure of himself. If one thing was sure, Haruka could have been an actor, just like the wild blonde.

“So you don’t know where he’s hiding them?”

Haruka felt a bit of reassurance rise up in him. Rei would never see those beasts again, if anything. No hope inside him could save him from the truth only so few humans knew. That optimistic look of his wouldn’t be anything if he knew where they truly were.

“No.” He responded brusquely, eyes glued to the other. He didn’t want to make any contact with the government thugs if possible.

“Well,” He huffed, his haughty look clouded with disappointment. “We’ll get out of your way then. Tell me if you remember anything, Dr. Nanase.”

As Rei turned, Haruka felt a dreadful wave of hesitation take him over. He raised his shadowed face and swallowed the bile rising in his throat.

“Professor Ryugazaki,” He reached out with his voice quickly. The other stopped, but didn’t turn around. “I remember one thing: he didn’t have a key to the shark tank.”

“Did he?” His murmuring deafened the other until nothing remained but shadows and doubts. Rei turned only slightly, his eyes dark with masked suspicion. Haruka knew that look. He was truly the one being blamed in this situation; the hostility was all just a well-planned out façade. They were both lying to each other, and neither wanted to give in. Neither would sacrifice their queens.

He then continued walking, until he was masked in the shadows of the elevator, pressing the button to go down. Stepping in silently, the guards followed like dogs, and they began to murmur quietly as Rei’s violet eyes made contact with Haruka’s one last time. Steel plated doors slid together with a creak and then the good doctor was all alone in his wicked, corrupt world.


	25. Day 24: The Dreamer, the Realist

Rin was there. He was standing right there. With the ocean still around his human feet he waited, staring at the other in shock. He reached his arm out to Haruka, trying to say something the other couldn’t hear. Waves crashed up against the doctor’s feet, and when he looked down he realized he was standing on the black surface of an angry ocean. Water gripped at his ankles, forming into dark hands trying to pull him in all directions as the redhead stood on the surface just out of reach. He tried to break free of the hands’ angry grasps, and shove his way towards the other but when he tried he was pulled back further, just out of finger’s reach. Sapphire eyes locked onto his, but what he saw was unnerving. Rin’s body was changing, and so was his attire. All of a sudden a long white lab coat hung onto his sides, draping over a crimson sweater and gray slacks. His eyes were black as the night and his expression cold, calculating.

Haruka felt a nauseous wave of terror flood his body and he tried to step back. When he did the hands let go abruptly and melted away, sending him plunging down into the freezing surf. He watched as Rin strode up to him stoically, his feet bare and pink. The doctor tried to force his way back up to the surface, but a sharp pain exploded throughout his body. It felt as if he had been scorched by lightning, his heart beating erratically as he clawed his way upward.

Rin stopped before him, leaning down on one knee as he watched the other struggle for his life. Pain was everywhere, sending the doctor’s body in a fit of tremors, and when he finally made it back up to the surface his bare palms slammed into the top, unable to go any further. It felt as if the top of the water was made of glass, not letting him free to catch his breath. Lungs burning, he held both of his palms to the surface and tried to push free. Rin looked down through his hollow black eyes, pulling a pen out from his coat pocket and scrawling things down on it. The crisp white lab coat wasn’t plain anymore. It was drenched with words. In chilling fonts, his coat screamed names at the other: beast, creature, demon, animal, dolphin.

The doctor didn’t know what to make of it. He screamed at the now-human creature, and then realized Rin could hear him perfectly fine. Smiling with a sickly sweet grin, the shark-man set his hand on top of the others’. Ink began to drip from his coat and into the water, beginning to swim closer to Haruka. He choked on it, and then looked down towards his feet, eyes wide with instinctual fear. Where were his legs? A long tail hung from his hips, swaying in the dark as he treaded the water. He was an animal. Gaping back up at the other, he felt his body wrack itself with shivers, feeling the cold water rush against his bare skin. Rin smiled again and stood, and then something terrible happened.

The water shattered beneath him, and before he knew it the other was sinking below the waves. Haruka tried to swim after him, but he was in too much agony to move. Dark liquid hands grabbed at the base of his tail, holding him back as inky words floated all around him. They shrieked silently, piercing his ears deafeningly.

Monster, beast, animal, creature, demon, fiend…

Human.

Haruka woke in a cold sweat, eyes wide with fear as he stared at the unfamiliar ceiling fan of a cheap hotel room. Sitting up, he felt the warm touch of soft linen sheets slide around his legs, relieving him instantly. He looked over to the clock, which was beeping insistently, and noticed it was noon. He had slept through all the night and into the day. Reprimanding himself for sleeping in so late, he dragged himself from the bed but ignored the curtains, leaving them closed. He should have set his alarm for earlier, knowing that he would now be late to his destination.

Brushing his teeth slowly, he gazed at himself in the mirror almost lethargically. His face gave off the nostalgic type of feeling you’d see when you met one of your old friends after years of separation. It was worn and tired, with shadows under his eyes that could have been passed as eyeliner. Azure orbs full of exhaustion stared back at him, asking him hundreds of questions he was reluctant to answer. His face didn’t even seem his own anymore, but somebody else’s, staring back at him tired and ready to sleep life away. He set his tooth brush down on a towel when he was done, and splashed cold water from the sink onto his face.

Leaving the bathroom with his bag of necessities in hand, he placed them in his suitcase and dragged on a warm navy sweatshirt and some casual jeans. Maybe if he dressed like a civilian nobody would notice him; he anticipated silently. The government was keeping an eye on him, so he’d have to be fast. He planned on leaving Japan and heading towards the big island of Hawaii. He hoped, masking over all the feeling of regret and painful sorrow, that he could make the start of a new life there. He knew though, he knew that he would always have Rin’s face in mind. Every day he would wish himself to forget, but he saw that he would never let himself do that.

Zipping up his suitcase, he headed out the door without another word.

***

Arriving at an old marina along a beautiful gray stretch of ocean, Haruka parked his car under an old sakura tree. Leaves still hung to the branches lifelessly, toughing out the mild winter as it progressed ever so slowly. That would be a good place to keep his vehicle, knowing that he’d never use it again. There was a small note in the glove compartment to Makoto, along with the picture from their childhood. It was a secret note, one he hoped the other would never find, for it was too painful.

Feet crunching against the wet gravel, Haruka headed towards the docks, a set of old keys dangling in his hands as he entered it. Large yachts were parked along the outside, and the littler boats on the in. There were all sorts of things ranging from speed boats to luxury, and everything in between. The doctor remembered only the name of his though, the family name printed along the side in cursive and blue. His parents had passed it down to him when they went off in search of bigger and better things, and the raven-haired male counted his lucky stars as he padded down the slick piers moderately. Their boat hadn’t been used in years, and he hoped it still ran as well as it did. It was a fast boat built for luxury, just how his parents had liked it.

He found it right where it had been left, unused for so many years. As he leapt on, he heard a car drive up in the parking lot behind him. Silently, he turned, and then froze when he saw the black van. Hopefully they hadn’t seen him board his boat, he thought as he fell to his stomach, hiding from view on the deck as men in suits began to file out of it. The sky was absurdly gray for it only being three o’clock in the afternoon and rain again seemed to threaten Haruka as he shuffled towards the door and unlocked it silently, sneaking inside. As if it were instinct, he locked the door and slid open the entry to the small, yet comfortable, bedroom. 

A useless wave of sentiment washed over him as he remembered the place, sleeping in between his parents as a child when they went on fishing trips. His father loved fishing for mackerel; it was his favorite pass time when they all still functioned as a family. Haruka felt his eyes water, but he didn’t have time for that type of emotion now. He threw his suitcase on the bed and gazed out the porthole on the door to look out the wide glass windows of the control room. Almost relieved when he saw two bulky men saunter past his boat, he leaned against the door and breathed to himself. He would have to wait until they left to start the engine, or else he’d surly get caught.

It was almost two hours later when he was sure they were gone. The sky was black now, and rain pattered against the roof violently, causing all sound to be muted out. He prayed to whatever god seemed to be watching him that day and crept out to the wheel. Seating himself silently, he put his key in and checked all the gauges. It seemed this time he had luck on his side. Everything was working properly, and the last thing he had to do was turn on the engine and get out of there. Rain washed against the glass window in sheets and he almost couldn’t see where he was going as he brought the machine to life, its old powerhouse revving loudly. Turning the wheel, he pulled it out of the marina and began his runaway, in suspense that he wouldn’t be seen.

Before he got even a mile out he saw lights flare up behind him, and a police boat shot out of the dark of the harbor towards him. Cursing angrily to himself, he increased the power and speed, thundering across the water away from the one in pursuit. Sirens screamed as another phased out from behind it, really making the doctor’s blood boil. They could never give him a break, could they? It looked as if he wasn’t fully on any god’s side; he was only there for their own sick amusement. It was funny in a way, and he couldn’t help chuckle to himself. He would have to lose them if he wanted to finally escape Japan once and for all. His real race for survival started the night he was finally let free.


	26. Day 25: The Swan Song of the Vengeful

The rain was being persistently annoying, falling down in sheets and spattering against the glass of the window. Ashen gray clouds rolled in quickly, and the fleeting sun disappeared under the banks. The water swelled with anger, pushing the boat along haphazard currents and out of the direction the doctor wanted it to go. Shoving down on the accelerator, Haruka’s blood boiled with adrenaline. Sirens wailing songs of incarceration behind him, shrieking notes high enough to split his ears open. Everything was too much, and dark stops flocked in his eyes, moving around so slowly that they made everything seem to pause. Turning around, he looked out the side-window to see three of them in pursuit, each flashing bright beams of red, yellow, and blue. It was almost daunting, but at this point the doctor had given up. People hadn’t ever been his favorite subject, and to be honest he knew his time among them would be drawing to a close. It was eminent; he couldn’t live like this, knowing what they were capable of.

Thrusting the wheel to the left, he headed back towards the inlet where city lights flourished in hues of greens and gold. Maybe he could lose them there, since he knew his boat didn’t have the fuel needed for a trip across the Pacific. The gauges yelled at him to slow, that his boat would surely overheat or blow a gasket or something if he didn’t let up on the gas. He wanted to oblige, considering this was his only means of transportation, but he couldn’t risk getting caught. He had to lose them; it was his only hope.

Flying around a commercial fisher, he gazed at the logo on the side and felt his heart stop. It was the same boat that had captured the sharks so long ago. It seemed to be out of commission for now, its teal paintjob washed green by the water. The lights were out and nobody stirred; the government must have gotten rid of all of them aboard. Haruka suddenly became apprehensive, turning around to see at least two of the police-boats still on his trail. Even though all of his lights were off, it seemed their sensors could still detect his presence. Annoying, he thought as he dodged yet another boat, a cargo making its way to America, carrying all sorts of goods. Cerulean eyes dark, he recalled all those old movies where the stowaway only made it partially to the destination before being caught, or dying of starvation. He checked that idea off his list.

A wave came rebounding off of the freighter, and it slammed into his motorboat, shoving it a couple meters away. Gripping onto the wheel as his legs went out underneath him, Haruka inhaled sharply. The closer he got to shore, the harder it was to maneuver through the obstacles. Turning around as he urged the machine to go farther, he spotted a police-boat at the helm, and then smirked. There was only one, where were the other two? Just as he made it to the end of the cargo ship the two others shot out in front of him, and he jerked the wheel farther, shooting just out of reach of the two. Leaning dangerously up on his side as he wheeled around them, the raven-haired doctor pleaded for safety. But there was more to come as he rounded another threatening corner.

Dodging another two private vessels, he heard a buzzer go off on the switchboard in front of him. The boat was losing fuel, oil, and the will to run any longer quickly. It was madness, but he had to go further, leaping over waves like a madman at speeds exceptionally illegal for those waters. Large raindrops pelted the boat, obscuring his vision so harshly it was difficult to see in front of him. That only proved true when he accidentally sideswiped a vacant sailboat, causing sparks to fly and a loud shrieking to be heard. Head throbbing, Haruka heard the sirens bouncing off the walls of his skull. It was painful, but he had to trudge on, even if his boat was beginning to shut itself off.

The doctor’s body felt like lead and his mind jelly, everything stopping and going in motion picture and his feet glued to the floor. His arms stayed in place but his mind screamed at him to abandon ship. But he couldn’t! The water was too cold and it was winter-time! He’d surely die of hypothermia if he made any contact. It was so frustrating he would’ve just thrown himself overboard for the hell of it. He hated the world he lived in anyways, and seeing Rei’s face again would surely spell his end. He deemed this hurrah his final hour, his passing onto greater things, his swan song. He didn’t even turn when he heard the chorus of sirens and more lights flashing onto his deck. More must have joined together; it seemed he was a wanted man at this point. Eyes hardening, Haruka revved the engine once more and slammed on the remainder of the gas, propelling him back in a circle and around towards the derailed commercial night-fishery. That was where he deemed his final stopping place.

As he made it closer he flickered all his lights on, illuminating the side of the ship green in the night. A picture of Rin’s illuminating face passed through his mind. Hitting the breaks he stopped just before he rocked into the side of the larger vessel, rubbing white paint off onto it. Water washed along everything, a wave crashing onto his deck and taking out everything as he cut the gas. Rain assaulted the glass and onto the wood and steel, clanking with the reverberation of thousands of dead bullets. It was an oddly tranquil sound, beckoning the doctor out into it. Opening the door with all his remaining strength, Haruka trudged into the onslaught, hands at his sides. Running out onto the deck, his sapphire eyes scanned the deadly surf below him.

Emotions came along with the sirens, and the police made their way closer as Haruka stared into the dark, building up tension in his lungs and a painful swelling in his chest. Heart pounding with adrenaline, he rested his numb hands on the slick rail and screamed against the blaring wind.

“Rin!” He shrieked, leaning over the edge. “Riiin!”

Tears streaked down his face as he choked on the remnants of his conscious. Everything was a blur and pain erupted from all sides of his body, whether it was numbness or fatigue. The boats were now surrounding him, five of them flooding his whole vessel and the side of the other one with light. The sirens ceased to wail except for two of them, and men in thick windbreakers came out onto the decks with microphones. It was almost hell, and a little bit of recusant heaven. The boats floated almost ten meters away from his own, not wanting to get any closer as one dropped a littler dinghy, most likely for his unwilling submit.

“Rin!” He screamed one last time out into the open, eyes wet and stinging as rain and water lashed at his face and back. He felt drowned, the smell of salt and he pungent odor of burning gas matting the air. A couple men rowed out to his boat, and it was almost funny, how hard they fought against the current. Suddenly, one of the officials on the larger vessel called his full name and he looked up to face them.

“Doctor Haruka Nanase, you are under arrest on the charges of: battery to a government coworker, the refusal of arrest, and the theft of government property and test subjects.” An older man shouted over the loud-phone, making the disinclined doctor to cringe. “If you refuse to be arrested again you could be sent to prison for—” there was a loud bloodcurdling scream and everything went quiet. Haruka found his attention back on the water, where something caught his eye.

The dinghy was empty and flipped over, orange life vests littering the surface of the water. An oar rose to the top of the surf, broken in half with long gashes through it. The sheriff was aghast as he called for another to go out there. Sapphire eyes intent on the oar, Haruka felt his heart freeze in a slow trepidation. It wasn’t absolute worry, but he felt something else grow within him too. He gazed at the next two boats as they made their ways closer, police holding guns in their hands aimed at him as they moved. As if the doctor had anything to do with it, though.

“Haruka Nanase, you’re under arre—” something exploded from the water, latching its arms onto the armed man’s shoulders and yanking him from his seat. He screamed as he disappeared under, making the other police shout in fear, huddling closer to the inside of the boats. One brave soul stood, and loaded his pistol, eyes black with rage.

“Whatever it is you’re doing, cease now or I’ll shoot!” He shouted, voice trembling with fear. Rain pelted everything with an angry roar as two strong arms came out of the water, latching onto the side of the boat and tilting it dangerously to the side as a creature peered its ugly muzzle out of the surf. Shoving itself up on board, water poured in as claws dug into the wood. The humans screamed in terror as armored plates on its body glinted bloody in the floodlight, and the monster reached out and snatched the man’s ankle, pulling him down and wrenching the boat over.

It was almost too good to be true, and before he knew it the men aboard the police-ships had their rifles out and aiming at him.

“Just kill him now!” The sheriff ordered, pointing at the doctor, who by now had a stoic mask covering his confusion and excitement. A bullet whizzed by his head and caught his attention in an instant, making him duck as another beast torpedoed out of the water with great speed and strength and slammed into the side of the first boat, its armor resounding against the steel walls. It yanked itself up before falling back down, leaving beautifully deep gashes in the side. Haruka scrambled back up to the steel railing to see the others backing away. The creatures began to crash into the sides and capsize dinghies with horrific roars as soon as anyone made it close to his family’s boat. Almost a miracle, he believed, cracking a small smile as it suddenly became a bloody massacre. Water from the heavens whipped and blew and shot across everything, blinding Haruka as he braced precariously against the edge. Wet hair clung to his face and his eyes stung, but he kept them open, screaming one last time towards the water.

“Rin!” He shouted, and watched as more than fifty armor-plated dorsal fins slipped throughout the surf all around the boats, sharpened claws tearing at everything manmade, including his. The water glowed crimson, everything was alight with fiery rage. It had the ignorant humans cowering with fear, but a familiar cobalt glow just beneath the surface had his consideration. A body burst from the water, throwing it up all around into sparkling light. White silken cloth hung from a golden cuff around his neck, cascading down into the water like a cloak, and flowing all around him with the grace and appearance of a jellyfish. Onyx spikes rose from an old crown on his forehead, glinting with imbedded rubies and black pearls. What a dream it was to see the familiar scars on his neck and face, it was so surreal that Haruka doubted everything he had learned his whole life. It wasn’t much to have him uncertain, but when those illuminating scarlet eyes caught his, he felt he didn’t care what he believed anymore.

“Rin…” He breathed, and the shark smiled longingly, raising his arms from the vengeful wake and holding them out in the open air. Gold wristbands and bracelets and cuffs littered his arms, glimmering in the light. He stared intently up, his pearly teeth shining as he spoke.

“Jump Haruka!” He shouted upwards, expression hardening with urgency. “We all need to get out of here! I’ll catch you, please jump!”

Haruka looked down in shock, unsure but sure enough. If he died from the cold, at least he’d be in Rin’s arms. Dragging his numb body onto the railing, he stood as if he was going to fall from a tall building, staring down at the water below. Men scrambled from the center of their boats to yell at him not to jump, to preserve his life, but the doctor only smiled. They were so ignorant, had they known nothing about him? He was the stoic man who never listened to anybody. He never formed bonds with his subjects, and he never got in the way of another’s research. What a hypocritical time in his life, he mused as he held his arms off his side, the noises from the other humans disoriented and echoing inaudibly in his ears. He never took his eyes off of Rin as he took one foot off the steel bars, and then the other, and fell silently.

He made contact with Rin before his did the water, the warmth of the shark’s chest impossible. He was almost burning up, but maybe, he dreamt as he felt the icy water, that’s just how they usually were in the wild. Like a heater, he clung to the other, opening his eyes as they descended under the water, everything becoming quiet. Water rushed into his ears as he witnessed at least a hundred steel-plated warrior sharks raking at the bottom of the vessels and disappearing into the dark before returning for more. It was truly a sight to behold, and he then saw Seijurrou, commanding the others to retreat, decorated in medals of sorts and spikes crowning the crest of his helmet. He gazed at the doctor for mere seconds before he smiled and swam near, his voice muted in the water. Ryugazaki was right. It sounded like when you tried to talk and keep your mouth shut at the same time, everything coming out as slightly inaudible.

Rin stared back at Haruka as they drifted deeper, the shark holding onto the doctor protectively. Everything was as warm as tropical waters would be with the sharks’ extremely high body heat in company. If it wasn’t for his need to breathe soon, Haruka would’ve wanted to stay there. He wrapped his arms around Rin’s neck as the shark commanded, and suddenly he was being dragged out towards the bottom of the ocean, with tens of hundreds of warriors behind him in pursuit. His feet were cold but his body warm, feeling the silk of the prince’s cloak sub along his wrists and sweatshirt. Inhaling sharply, the doctor smiled wistfully, as he held his face up to the surface. Staring back at the shark’s head, he noticed the tag was still on his ear, shown off along with more studs and rings, and the runaway was thoughtful, maybe it was destined for them to meet. That up in the linings of the stars or something stirring at the bottom of the sea had known all along what this would be their fate. The human world wasn’t for Haruka, it was more ignorance, for arrogance, for people who worked to live and didn’t believe in stories. Somewhere in the back of his mind he heard his phone ringing, and he heard shuffling, then Makoto’s excited voice ring through his ears. There was a sigh, a ‘what do you want’, and ‘it’s three am.’ Laughter erupted through the thick water, and Rin turned his head to see the male’s sapphire eyes closing. A smile took place on his features, and bubbles escaped his blue lips. Haruka’s arms slackened, and there was a worried murmur somewhere just beyond his realm of consciousness. He wanted to answer it, but at the time he was talking to Makoto. It wasn’t too important, but he felt he should answer his long lost friend. ‘What’ he demanded tiredly, exhaustion running through his body.

“Do you believe in fairytales, Haru?”


	27. Epilogue: The Beautiful World

The first thing Haruka felt when he resurfaced was cold. Chilled rain pattered against his drowned hair and streaked down his face. Drops trickled off his dark eyelashes and into his stinging eyes. He almost couldn’t remember what was going on until he felt a familiarly warm mop of crimson hair stuck to the side of his cheek. Waves rushed around their shoulders as the shark swam on slowly, his breaths coming out as uneven and ragged. Letting out a sharp exhale, Haruka felt water slosh around in his lungs, and roar in his ears. Feeling like a half-drowned rat, the doctor shuffled his weight around, trying to put himself in a more comfortable position. Neither had talked after they had fled, neither felt like they needed to. The prince was exhausted, and so was the human as it seemed. His legs bumped against the other’s dorsal fin as they trudged along, the wind slapping at their faces and pulling at their backs. With a small heave of effort the human turned his face to look behind him. 

Tiny, almost undetected lights twinkled like stars on the distant horizon. Even boats and fisheries were miniature blips on the doctor’s radar. Japan was getting smaller as they swam away, and soon it would be unnoticeable, and out of their minds. The human could hardly believe it. His sapphire eyes caught almost a hundred more bodies slip through the surf behind them, riding the waves elegantly, their smoky silhouettes barely visible in the extreme dark. He felt a cough wrack his chest and his feet seemed to sting with a thousand needles. Pain burned in the places where Rin’s excess body heat couldn’t reach, and the human’s nervous system couldn’t tell whether to warn him of hypothermia or not. It was a jumbled, dangerous, and anxious mess, leading Haruka to feel sick to his stomach. Resting his face on the other’s shoulder, he listened to the erratic heartbeat of the other, and felt his gills move with his shoulders as he flew along the waves.

“How did you find me?” He finally broke the silence, throat burning and lungs screaming at him. The shark turned his head slightly to look back at the other, scarlet eyes glowing blue in the night.

“I didn’t intend to, actually.” He rumbled, eyes narrowing mischievously. “I had brought the others here to screw with the fishing industries.”

“Really,” Haruka sighed, the other laughed.

“Really.” Rin’s sharp teeth illuminated brightly as he flashed a smile. “We were going to bring back a bounty until your dumb boat sped over my head; you nearly took it off, y’know.”

The human smiled sullenly.

“It wasn’t until I heard you that I knew it was you.” Rin’s smile faded. “Your tone really scared me. It sounded like you were dying.”

The tag on Rin’s ear tickled Haruka’s face as he moved it to look at the other. The shark looked upset, and awfully nervous. His face was tired, and expression dim. The human knew he’d have to explain sooner or later.

“I probably was going to.” He murmured. “If you hadn’t come.”

Rin didn’t look at him as he charged forward, slipping under a tall wave. It thundered over them, drenching the two as they slunk below, not feeling any of its powerful effects. Deep below the surface, the noise was scarce, and nothing moved but the creatures in pursuit. It was clam, so very tranquil compared to the world above. But his time there was scarce, and Rin made a break for it back to the top, both gasping as their heads broke through the waves.

“On your boat,” Rin continued, pulling ahead. “Where were you going to go?”

Haruka stared at him for a moment, face turning red with guilt and embarrassment. He looked away into the nothingness, unsure how to answer. It was the type of double-edged answer, one that was good and bad. How could he say he was going to leave and forget about everything, all for the sake of being safe and sane?

“Hawaii.” He spat at the wind, water running into his mouth. The human didn’t know how much longer he could stay awake to face the elements.

“I know of that place.” Rin muttered, staring straight ahead. “… I could get you there, if you wanted.”

Haruka’s eyes went wide, and he stared at the other in shock. Nodding, he felt the other’s body tense. It was an apprehensive tension, one that a person would give off when they held a secret they didn’t want to tell. It was a dark secret, one that would surely break another’s heart. The doctor didn’t care about the outcome though; he just wanted to get away from everything.

“You’re going to need to hold on and hold your breath, then.” Rin said, flexing his shoulders. “There’s a jet-stream just below us that can take us across the entire ocean. It’s powered by the same thermal system that created those islands.” 

Haruka leaned his cheek against the other’s shoulders, silently listening to his breathing. It was strong and steady, ready to go, to leave, and to help him in his time of need. He had never in his time alive met another creature so vastly interesting, so caring, so wild. It was almost reassuring, the resolution in his voice. He wasn’t human but he was something more. The shark, the man, everything that Rin embodied was something that could be trusted in his darkest hours. They were drifting, a predator and its prey, out in the center of nothing. No lights burned in the sky, no boats drifted on the horizon. The only thing that could be seen was the hundreds of fins breaking the surface and slipping below. Water jetted from gills, and spilled out into the icy air. Surreal as it was, the doctor could hardly feel any fear. These beasts were mere gentle giants, and it was surprising to think that with one word the fiery-haired prince could bend their wills. Instinct bowed to the hierarchy, kneeled at its feet. The creatures that could tear the throats of men out and drag boats under the surf, but monsters that fairytales and folklore spoke of remained not in them. That may be, but in a twisted, illuminating sense of enchanting myth, they were the same beings.

Twisting down, below the water, Haruka felt a calm settle over him. He would be missed, and resented. Without any time to say goodbye or free the wrongfully imprisoned, he disappeared. His time came quicker than he could even imagine. Within a day he felt changed, like the stars realigned and threw him into a hurricane of events and emotions, recurrences and nostalgia that he couldn’t run from. Rin had saved him from himself, only by looking him straight in the eye and showing him a true reality that no human could conjure. What the professor had called them, the fiends he wrote about in his books, were the true humans. The society that Haruka was leaving behind was nothing more than a shallow, shattered product of a glorious past. What light that glowed in the eyes of a heroic race was now extinguished like a crushed cigarette on the wet, grimy asphalt. Humans could never be what they envisioned themselves to be. Sure, there were some good people, but even those who rebel against the wrongs of true power are crushed. It’s as simple as that. Hope is strong, and cunning stronger, and to just run may be deemed as cowardly. But what is a coward? Someone who abuses his power? It a coward a person who runs from his problems? Or is a coward somebody who does all the dirty work? There are infinite definitions for someone who could be deemed cowardly. But Rin, Rin and Haruka were not cowards. They ran because hope bent them in ways that only a desperate soul could act.

The crimson hair of the prince whipped around like a flame defying the laws of physics, and got in the way of Haruka’s vision as they thundered through the water, faster than he’d ever gone before. The slick torpedo-shaped bodies of the other sharks whipped all around them, running overhead or just below, spinning around and ducking in and out of the warm current. The human heard metal plates of old dented armor clanking together and the laughs of tens of hundreds of men around him. Their humanity was clear: they laughed and cried, and lived their lives for themselves, and nobody else. They weren’t concerned by the human condition or the casualties above their world. These men had families they lived for, and they had no concern for the nuclear warfare threatening the survival of their brother race. All those signs, they knew what they meant: humans were struggling to survive.

But humans went out to discover planets and solar systems and cures for diseases. Humans worked on things that these sharks could never dream of knowing about. To a person like the professor, these creatures were fools. They were brain-dead. To Haruka, as he gazed in front of him, watching as the warrior-sharks laughed and played around in a current so highway-like, they were brilliantly brain-dead. They were the smartest fools, not letting trivial things so irreversible get in their way. True, he only knew Rin and Gou, Seijurrou, and Nitori, but even being captured and tortured, they didn’t let it break their hearts. Sharks were strong and intelligent, and still knew how to live their lives without worry.

Bubbles escaped Rin’s illuminating gills, and the prince let out a long laugh, seeming to lighten up as he watched the other sharks below him point to something ahead. Sapphire eyes caught a mass of silver ahead, conforming into different shapes like a large bubble moving onward. It was a school of fish.

The prince looked to him, and pointed upward towards the oncoming surface. They were heading upward quickly, and before Haruka could brace himself he was up in the air, feeling wind whip by him as Rin’s body lost all contact with the water and as flew through the sky. Haruka gasped, inhaling sharply as he stared up in shock. The clouds were gone, and an almost-full moon hung high in the sky. Stars burned brightly, lost in time, as thin white clouds vacantly idled about. The air still had a humid mist about it, but everything was calm. Behind them the storm still brewed, but for now it seemed they were ahead of it. Exploding back into the water, Haruka held his breath as tiny silver bullets surrounded them. He ceased a chuckle of primal excitement as the sharks hurtled about, catching them in their jaws and claws. It was like a fairytale, indeed. Bursting from the water once more, Haruka watched the other sharks fly by, nabbing fish out of the air. Bodies sleek and bathed in moonlight, he didn’t even notice once they entered the water again. Hair colors ranging from gold to greens met his attention and he saw the people in a new light, their expressions bright, their stories heard. Seijurrou passed him, fish in hands, and slapped the doctor on the shoulder, beaming. Haruka didn’t know why he was there; it just seemed fate had brought him. He wasn’t fit to be a human, so he wouldn’t be one any longer as long as he breathed beneath the stars whether that be on land or under water. He wasn’t trapped in a useless world, breaking his neck for temporary sanity. It was just an ordinary day shaped with legends of the old. Life was more beautiful than he had thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a thank you, to all of you guys who stuck with me through the whole fic. This means a lot to me, considering I’ve never finished one before. Wow, I can’t believe I actually wrote and finished that au. I really want to thank the readers who have given me support and encouragement. You guys really mean a lot to me and don’t you think I don’t know about your contribution to my story. Throughout the fic i’ve gotten countless messages and fanmail and that is the best thing i think you could have done. I’ve made so may new friends through the au (and don’t think it’ll be the only one i’ll write wink wink for those actually reading) You guys stuck with me through thick and thin and even though my writing’s dark and not really the equivalent to Nicholas Sparks in the romance category, you stuck with the story. You laughed and cried with me, and we all equally wanted Nagisa to get off his ass and stop Rei am I right? Man I wish I could’ve gotten the poor kid out of prison. Maybe that’s how he turned into a thug I dunno. Well other than that I just want to wrap it up and say thank you to all my sharks and scientists out there, you make the world better than i could ever write it. My eyes only perceive the negativities of this society, and when i see all the kindness and support you guys give me i’m really happy. 
> 
> Don’t think I’m gone for good though! MS01 will still be alive, depending which way i want to go with it. And watch out for my next RinHaru au. It’ll be as thrilling as the last!
> 
> Take to the seas my friends! Paint the skies with light!
> 
> -Owl

**Author's Note:**

> Oh Haru.


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